warfarin and Convalescence

To compare the probability of leg vein recanalization between carriers and non-carriers of thrombophilia after an episode of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) of the lower extremities, we reviewed the clinical records of 472 patients with proximal DVT who were diagnosed with thrombophilia, and had long-term ultrasound scanning. One hundred and thirty-seven patients (29.0%) were carriers of thrombophilia. After adjusting for age, sex, DVT localization and modality of presentation, the hazard ratio of vein recanalization in thrombophilic compared with non-thrombophilic patients was 0.49 (95% CI, 0.38 to 0.63). These findings suggest that thrombophilia is an independent predictor of persistent residual vein thrombosis.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Anticoagulants; Capillary Permeability; Child; Convalescence; Female; Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight; Humans; International Normalized Ratio; Male; Middle Aged; Prevalence; Recurrence; Retrospective Studies; Thrombophilia; Thrombophlebitis; Treatment Outcome; Ultrasonography; Warfarin

Despite the difficulty in diagnosis and the detailed care necessary in both the acute and long-term management of the patient with pulmonary embolism, expertise in this area is requisite for the primary care physician who may expect to encounter this problem with moderate frequency among patients in his clinical practice.

Topics: Acute Disease; Adult; Convalescence; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Heparin; Humans; Middle Aged; Pregnancy; Pulmonary Embolism; Radionuclide Imaging; Streptokinase; Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator; Warfarin