New approaches on diagnosis and treatment of venous thromboembolism

2014

Summary Pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep vein thrombosis (DVT) are two clinical presentations of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and share the same predisposing factors. In patients admitted to a hospital the rationale use of thromboprophylaxis is based on the high prevalence of VTE amongst hospitalised patients, the adverse consequences of unprevented VTE, and the efficacy of thromboprophylaxis. There is no doubt about the benefit/risk ratio of perioperative venous thromboembolism prophylaxis, but for a safety performance of regional anaesthesia, particularly neuraxial blocks, an appropriate management based on safety intervals suited to the characteristics of the drug is needed. The first st…