Is immediate postoperative fever related to drop in haemoglobin? A comparative study in simultaneous bilateral total knee arthroplasty patients.

The purpose of the study was to assess whether fever in the immediate postoperative period after total knee arthroplasty was indeed related to the fall in haemoglobin. Only patients undergoing bilateral simultaneous total knee replacement were included in the study since the fall in haemoglobin is expected to be more as compared to unilateral cases. The mean fall in haemoglobin of 25 patients having immediate postoperative fever ('fever group') was compared with 27 patients having no fever ('no-fever group'). Though the mean fall of haemoglobin in 'fever group' was more compared to 'no-fever group', the difference was not statistically significant. Therefore, this study does not support the view that immediate postoperative fever after total knee arthroplasty is related to drop in haemoglobin.