Is Tranexamic Acid Beneficial in Open Spine Surgery ? and its Effects Vary by Dosage, Age, Sites, and Locations: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

The role of tranexamic acid (TXA) in controlling blood loss during spine surgery remains unclear. With the publication of new randomized controlled trials (RCTs), we conducted a meta-analysis to determine the safety and efficacy of TXA in spine surgery. PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases were searched for relevant studies through 2022. Only RCTs were eligible for this study. The extracted data were analyzed using RevMan 5.3 software for meta-analysis. Twenty RCTs including 1497 patients undergoing spine surgery were included in this systematic evaluation. Compared with the control group, TXA significantly reduced total blood loss (mean difference [MD] = – 218.96, 95% confidence interval [CI] = – 309.77 to – 128.14, P