A patient who received 2 units of RBCs following surgery exhibits mild jaundice two weeks post-surgery. What should be done next?

The appropriate response in this situation is to repeat hepatitis testing in a few weeks. Mild jaundice appearing two weeks after a transfusion can be a sign of transfusion-related complications, including viral hepatitis, especially in cases where blood products may have introduced infectious agents.

Waiting for more severe symptoms or definitive clinical signs to develop is not advisable because early detection of any potential post-transfusion hepatitis could allow for timely intervention and management. Immediate testing might not provide conclusive results if the viral load has not yet become detectable, which is why repeating the testing after a few weeks is sensible. This delay allows sufficient time for any potential viral markers to become evident in the patient’s blood.

Contacting donor records can help identify if the units came from infected donors, but this should be part of a larger investigation and may not be the immediate next step for managing the patient. Instead, focusing on the patient’s health through follow-up testing is the priority to rule out any significant complications arising from the transfusion. Therefore, repeating hepatitis testing in a few weeks aligns with the need for a careful and patient-centered approach following a transfusion.