Routine home treatment of deep vein thrombosis

doi:10.1136/bmj.322.7296.1192

BMJ 2001;322:1192-1193 ( 19 May )

Editorials

Routine home treatment of deep vein thrombosis

Is now a reality

Papers p 1212

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Heparin therapy for at least five days followed by long term oral anticoagulation has been the standard care for patientswith acute deep vein thrombosis.¹ Initiation of treatment usuallyrequires patients to be admitted to hospital for administrationof intravenous unfractionated heparin and dose adjustment accordingto the results of the activated partial thromboplastin time. However,the emergence of low molecular weight heparin as a safe, effective,and convenient treatment for deep vein thrombosis has challengedthe need for routine admission. A paper in this week's issue addsto the evidence that home treatment of deep vein thrombosis isnow routinely feasible (p 1212).²

Aggregate data from a recent meta-analysis of randomised trials,³ also summarised in a Cochrane systematic review,⁴show that low molecular weight heparin is at least as effectiveand safe as unfractionated heparin for the initial treatment ofdeep vein thrombosis. Unlike unfractionated heparin, which is. . . [Full text of this article]

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Relevant Article

Eligibility for home treatment of deep vein thrombosis: prospective study: Thomas Schwarz, Benjamin Schmidt, Ulrike Höhlein, Jan Beyer, Hans-Egbert Schröder, and Sebastian M Schellong
BMJ 2001 322: 1212-1213. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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Quinlan, D. J., McQuillan, A., Eikelboom, J. W. (2004). Low-Molecular-Weight Heparin Compared with Intravenous Unfractionated Heparin for Treatment of Pulmonary Embolism: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized, Controlled Trials. ANN INTERN MED 140: 175-183 [Abstract] [Full text]

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Home therapy of deep vein thrombosis and Evidence Based Medicine inherent limitations.: Sergio Stagnaro
bmj.com, 20 May 2001 [Full text]
Anticoagulation software for managing a large number of long-term patients: Kevin T. W. Ong
bmj.com, 7 Apr 2002 [Full text]