red-heads and bleeding?

I know that redheads need up to 20% MORE anesthesia than folks with other color hair and that supposedly we have a higher tolerance to pain (tell that to my hubbie!), but I've not heard the bleeding one yet....hmmm. I'll have to take note of that next time I have a cut or scrape......

yea...i've heard both, but the bleeding doesn't really effect me. mostly i hear the bleeding a lot after giving birth, but I dunno.

Postpartum nurse here- we tend to report "watch her bleeding - she's a redhead" because redheads seem to bleed heavier than others. It happens enough that we feel it needs to be reported. And I work at a teaching institution that delivers 7000 babies a year. Wives tales usually don't fly far around that place.

Ok - not old wives' tale but it has been checked out.

Women with red hair report a slightly increased rate of bruising but have normal coagulation tests.

Anesth Analg. 2006; 102(1):313-8 (ISSN: 1526-7598)

Liem EB; Hollensead SC; Joiner TV; Sessler DI

Outcomes Research Institute and the Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky 40202, USA.

There is an anecdotal impression that redheads experience more perioperative bleeding complications than do people with other hair colors. We, therefore, tested the hypothesis that perceived problems with hemostasis could be detected with commonly used coagulation tests. We studied healthy female Caucasian volunteers, 18 to 40 yr of age, comparable in terms of height, weight, and age, with natural bright red (n = 25) or black or dark brown (n = 26) hair. Volunteers were questioned about their bleeding history and the following tests were performed: complete blood count, prothrombin time/international normalized ratio, activated partial thromboplastin time, platelet function analysis, and platelet aggregation using standard turbidimetric methodology. Agonists for aggregation were adenosine diphosphate, arachidonic acid, collagen, epinephrine, and two concentrations of ristocetin. The red-haired volunteers reported significantly more bruising, but there were no significant differences between the red-haired and dark-haired groups in hemoglobin concentration, platelet numbers, prothrombin time/international normalized ratio, or activated partial thromboplastin time. Furthermore, no significant differences in platelet function, as measured by platelet function analysis or platelet aggregometry, were observed. We conclude that if redheads have hemostasis abnormalities, they are subtle.

Medscape: Free CME, Medical News, Full-text Journal Articles & More

However there does seem to be some truth to the pain threshold idea.

Increased sensitivity to thermal pain and reduced subcutaneous lidocaine efficacy in redheads.

BACKGROUND: Anesthetic requirement in redheads is exaggerated, suggesting that redheads may be especially sensitive to pain. Therefore, the authors tested the hypotheses that women with natural red hair are more sensitive to pain and that redheads are resistant to topical and subcutaneous lidocaine. METHODS: The authors evaluated pain sensitivity in red-haired (n = 30) or dark-haired (n = 30) women by determining the electrical current perception threshold, pain perception, and maximum pain tolerance with a Neurometer CPT/C (Neurotron, Inc., Baltimore, MD). They evaluated the analogous warm and cold temperature thresholds with the TSA-II Neurosensory Analyzer (Medoc Ltd., Minneapolis, MN). Volunteers were tested with both devices at baseline and with the Neurometer after 1-h exposure to 4% liposomal lidocaine and after subcutaneous injection of 1% lidocaine. Data are presented as medians (interquartile ranges). RESULTS: Current perception, pain perception, and pain tolerance thresholds were similar in the red-haired and dark-haired women at 2,000, 250, and 5 Hz. In contrast, redheads were more sensitive to cold pain perception (22.6 [15.1-26.1] vs. 12.6 [0-20] degrees C; P = 0.004), cold pain tolerance (6.0 [0-9.7] vs. 0.0 [0.0-2.0] degrees C; P = 0.001), and heat pain (46.3 [45.7-47.5] vs. 47.7 [46.6-48.7] degrees C; P = 0.009). Subcutaneous lidocaine was significantly less effective in redheads (e.g., pain tolerance threshold at 2,000-Hz stimulation in redheads was 11.0 [8.5-16.5] vs. > 20.0 (14.5 to > 20) mA in others; P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Red hair is the phenotype for mutations of the melanocortin-1 receptor. Results indicate that redheads are more sensitive to thermal pain and are resistant to the analgesic effects of subcutaneous lidocaine. Mutations of the melanocortin-1 receptor, or a consequence thereof, thus modulate pain sensitivity

Medscape: Free CME, Medical News, Full-text Journal Articles & More

So, as the old saying goes, 6 of one, half a dozen of another . . . .

steph

Hmmm...it appears from this study that redheads are have less of a pain threshold.

I think they are old wives' tales . . .

steph

me too.

yes, i can have a temper;

but so can my non-redhead dtr.

and my non-redhead husband.

i don't have prolonged bleeding.

and i don't fit in with any other of the stereotypes.

could it be because my hair has brown in it?

after all, am i not a true redhead if my hair is auburn?

leslie

i guess we have broken the mold, steph.

why does that not surprise me? :balloons:

Oh man...I just colored my hair to auburn! LOL!!!!!!

I think it one of those things that point to individuals and not trends...I mean I was told darker skinned people don't show cyanosis well...and I don't know if I am just good at noticing it or not...but I don't find that true of all darker skinned folks! Some I see it right away!!!!!

Or many of the things said about elderly...like their pain perceptions are altered or they have such overused livers that they can be OD'd by second pass or even third passes too easily so don't give them as much pain meds. Found out that was not true of everyone, and watched many a geriatric patient be undermedicated for pain issues! Very sad....

I typically go more by the patient then a book...because as we well know in healthcare...rarely does the book apply, especially when you really need it too!!!! LOL!