When I asked the nurse, she said it was to prevent clotting. This seemed odd to me, because I was under the impression that I was supposed to coagulate. My urine had been running light red by morning the next day while irrigating through the 3-way Foley. She didn't give me any other explanation. I was reluctant, but allowed her to give the one-time dose anyway. Maybe it was part of their protocol? I'll have to ask the surgeon in June why they did this. I passed covid twice without the jab. Or, it could be my kidneys. One thing I remember the anesthesiologist assistant commenting about before surgery regarding my concern about transfusion was that my hemoglobin count was high, sufficient to cover me without transfusion. I have read papers about impaired kidney function and oxygen, if there isn't enough blood oxygen exchange, the kidneys will compensate by making more red blood cells. I didn't discuss this with her, I don't really know if this was the cause.

I wish I could edit here. I wanted to mention that I do notice that the more I move, the more I bleed. I overdid it yesterday carrying heavy grocery bags on foot for a distance I don't normally walk. This morning I didn't see any rust-color. I'll take shorter walks. I really needed the exercise.