Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis
Authors: Raghavendra R. Allareddy
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2012)

Letters21 February 2012Venous Thromboembolism ProphylaxisRaghavendra R. Allareddy, MD, MBBSRaghavendra R. Allareddy, MD, MBBSFrom Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-156-4-201202210-00021 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:I read Lederle and colleagues' review (1), along with the accompanying guideline from the American College of Physicians (2) and editorial (3), with great interest. These articles generate a lot of enthusiasm in many physicians—myself included—who are skeptical about the sweeping recommendations of The Joint Commission, which advocates for VTE prophylaxis in most surgical and hospitalized medical patients as a performance measure.We all agree about the high incidence and significant mortality and morbidity of VTE (4). Although we know that prophylaxis decreases the incidence of DVT, the extent of this effect varies; many believe that this ...References1. Lederle FA, Zylla D, MacDonald R, Wilt TJ. Venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in hospitalized medical patients and those with stroke: a background review for an American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guideline. Ann Intern Med. 2011;155:602-15. [PMID: 22041949] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Qaseem A, Chou R, Humphrey LL, Starkey M, Shekelle P; Clinical Guidelines Committee of the American College of Physicians. Venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in hospitalized patients: a clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians. Ann Intern Med. 2011;155:625-32. [PMID: 22041951] LinkGoogle Scholar3. Baker DW, Qaseem A; American College of Physicians' Performance Measurement Committee. Evidence-based performance measures: preventing unintended consequences of quality measurement [Editorial]. Ann Intern Med. 2011;155:638-40. [PMID: 22041954] LinkGoogle Scholar4. Geerts WH, Pineo GF, Heit JA, Bergqvist D, Lassen MR, Colwell CW, et al. Prevention of venous thromboembolism: the Seventh ACCP Conference on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy. Chest. 2004;126:338S-400S. [PMID: 15383478] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Barritt DW, Jordan SC. Anticoagulant drugs in the treatment of pulmonary embolism. A controlled trial. Lancet. 1960;1:1309-12. [PMID: 13797091] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Wiener RS, Schwartz LM, Woloshin S. Time trends in pulmonary embolism in the United States: evidence of overdiagnosis. Arch Intern Med. 2011;171:831-7. [PMID: 21555660] MedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH 44195.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoVenous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Hospitalized Medical Patients and Those With Stroke: A Background Review for an American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guideline Frank A. Lederle , Dylan Zylla , Roderick MacDonald , and Timothy J. Wilt Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Hospitalized Patients: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians Amir Qaseem , Roger Chou , Linda L. Humphrey , Melissa Starkey , Paul Shekelle , and Evidence-Based Performance Measures: Preventing Unintended Consequences of Quality Measurement David W. Baker , Amir Qaseem , and Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis Frank A. Lederle , Roderick MacDonald , and Timothy J. Wilt Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis Todd E.H. Hecht Metrics 21 February 2012Volume 156, Issue 4Page: 324-325KeywordsAngiographyComputed axial tomographyHeparinKneesMorbidityProphylaxisStrokeVenous thromboembolism ePublished: 21 February 2012 Issue Published: 21 February 2012 CopyrightCopyright © 2012 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...