2018 Volume 12 Issue 2 Pages 205-209
Objective: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) includes deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). VTE affects all races, age groups, and genders. The objective of this registry was to analyze the patient characteristics, clinical outcomes, management strategies, and temporal trends in VTE at a single center.
Materials and Methods: Consecutive medical records of inpatients between January 2007 and March 2018, meeting the inclusion criteria (confirmed diagnosis of DVT by Doppler ultrasound scan and/or PE by chest computed tomography) were identified and collected. A total of 1,024 patients were reviewed.
Results: Eight hundred and twelve patients with VTE were enrolled into the study; 37.4% were referrals from outside hospitals, 33.1% of the total patients had no risk factors, hence classified as unprovoked VTE and the rest of the patients had single or multiple risk factors which may have provoked the VTE, 68.8% presented with swelling and pain, and 88.5% had proximal DVT.
Conclusion: VTE is no longer a rare phenomenon in the Indian population, as believed earlier. The knowledge of VTE, prophylaxis, and treatment strategies is minimal among small institutes, nursing homes, and among general practitioners who are not affiliated with teaching institutes. Therefore, educating primary care physicians/surgeons on VTE is paramount, as this would reduce the incidence of VTE in India as well as associated morbidity and mortality rates.
