Venous thromboembolism controversies

Venous thromboembolism: Why is it still a significant health problem?

BACKGROUND

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) remains the third leading cause of acute cardiovascular syndrome following myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke. The global burden of disease worldwide is high and shows a steady upward trend in recent years with an incidence of 1-2 per 1000 adults per year. The overarching goal of the initial management of VTE is to prevent early and late adverse outcomes. Rapid evaluation and therapeutic intervention is vital to improving prognosis.

METHODS

We searched PubMed, Science Direct and Scopus databases for articles published in the last 10 years. Additionally, some earlier articles were analyzed.

RESULTS

For the purposes of this review, we discussed how understanding the epidemiology of VTE and the current knowledge of early and late complications of this disease have shaped the current approach to VTE prevention. We also analyzed the current knowledge and the most up-to-date information about VTE in COVID-19 infection. Contemporary perspective presented in this article on mortality in VTE, the incidence of recurrences, the risk of major bleeding during therapy and the chronic complications indicate why this is a major challenge for today's medicine and a current target for further research.

CONCLUSIONS

Understanding the interaction between environmental and genetic factors appears to be crucial in the diagnostic process. It can provide insight into the pathophysiology of VTE, potentially identifying options for targeted prevention and treatment. However, due to differences in clinical presentation, diagnosing pulmonary embolism may not be an easy task which perfectly illustrates the scale and complexity of the disease.

Direct oral anticoagulant therapy in patients with morbid obesity after intermediate- or high-risk pulmonary emboli

There is little reported on the efficacy and safety of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) in morbid obesity after venous thromboembolism (VTE). In this observational study, patients were followed up after intermediate- or high-risk pulmonary embolism (PE) at the University of Rochester Pulmonary Hypertension Clinic 2-4 months after the initial event. All patients had echocardiography and V/Q imaging regardless of symptoms. Outcomes of interest were the rates of recurrent VTE, thrombus resolution and development of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) in patients with morbid obesity treated with a DOAC compared to treatment with vitamin K antagonists and to non-morbidly obese patients after PE. Using the electronic medical record, recurrent events were assessed up to 12 months after the event. 107 patients (body mass index (BMI)>40 kg·m^-2, n=32; BMI 30-39.9 kg·m^-2, n=39; BMI<30 kg·m^-2, n=36) attended follow-up appointments after treatment for PE. A DOAC was used in 70 patients (BMI>40 kg·m^-2, n=19; BMI 30-39.9 kg·m^-2, n=27; BMI<30 kg·m^-2, n=24). There were no recurrent events within the first 12 months of initial diagnosis based on symptoms and imaging in any patient. There was no difference in rate of residual unmatched perfusion defect with DOACs or conventional anticoagulation (49% versus 49%). This finding remained in the subset of morbidly obese patients (47% versus 50%). For the overall cohort, there was no difference in the rate of CTEPH development based on anticoagulation with a DOAC (5% versus 8% with warfarin). There were no major bleeding complications with a DOAC. DOAC therapy appears to be effective and safe in morbid obesity even after intermediate- or high-risk PE. ​.