Radiometer logo

Venous thromboembolism (VTE)

Introduction to venous thromboembolism

The venous system is the section of the circulatory system that uses veins to return the deoxygenated blood to the heart and lungs. Occasionally, irregularities in the wall of a vein especially in areas of slow flow, can cause a blood clot, or thrombus, to form [1].

VTE is an underdiagnosed preventable medical condition that can cause disability and death [2]. VTE includes deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE).

Deep vein thrombosis

Deep vein thrombosis

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a medical condition in which a blood clot forms in a deep vein usually in the lower leg, thigh, or pelvis. Once the clot is formed, additional fibrin and red blood cell deposits can cause the thrombus to grow inside the vein and stops blood from flowing easily through the vein [1,2].

 

DVT is preventable and treatable if discovered early [2].

Pulmonary embolism

The most serious complication of DVT happens when a part of the clot breaks off and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs, causing a blockage called pulmonary embolism (PE).

If the clot is small, and with appropriate treatment, people can recover from PE. However, there could be some damage to the lungs. If the clot is large, it can stop blood from reaching the lungs and is fatal [2].

Pulmonary embolism

Facts

  • Every 37 seconds someone in the western world dies from a venous thromboembolism (VTE) [3]

  • 1 in 4 people die from causes related to blood clots [3]

  • 55%-60% of VTE cases occur during or following hospitalization [3]

  • VTE is the #1 cause of preventable deaths in hospital [3]

  • More people die from blood clots each year than the total number of people who lose their lives annually due to AIDS, breast cancer, and motor vehicle crashes combined [3]

There are a variety of risk factors that contribute to the development of deep vein thrombosis:

  • Surgery, particularly surgery of the hip or leg, or abdominal surgery [4]
  • Trauma or bone fracture [4]
  • A long period of bed rest or sitting for a long time (e.g., on an airplane or in a car) [4]
  • Cancer [4]
  • Pregnancy [4]
  • Birth control pills or hormones taken for symptoms of menopause [4]
  • COVID-19: 7-39% of patients with COVID-19 infection who require mechanical ventilation have acute PE/DVT [5].

Diagnosis

Diagnostic strategies for VTE are based on assessment of the pretest probability for individual patients, which provides an estimate of the expected prevalence of VTE at a population level [6].

For patients at low (unlikely) or intermediate VTE risk, using D-dimer* as the initial test reduces the need for diagnostic imaging [7].

For patients at high (likely) VTE risk, imaging is warranted.

For PE diagnosis, ventilation-perfusion scanning, and computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) are the most validated tests, whereas lower or upper extremity DVT diagnosis uses ultrasonography (ultrasound) [6].

* in combination with clinical probability assessment

 

Figure1: Strandberg K. The clinical use of D-dimer assay* [8].

References

1. Esmon CT, Basic Mechanisms and Pathogenesis of Venous Thrombosis, Blood Rev. 2009 Sep; 23(5): 225–229
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dvt/facts.html Accessed Oct 2020
3. Thrombosis UK, www.thrombosisuk.org/Accessed Oct 2020
4. Stanford healthcare. www.stanfordhealthcare.org. Accessed Oct 2020
5. American Society of Hematology. https://www.hematology.org Accessed Oct 2020
6. Lim W et al. American Society of Hematology 2018 guidelines for management of venous thromboembolism: diagnosis of venous thromboembolism. Blood Adv. 2018; 27,22.
7. Konstantinides S et al. Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of acute pulmonary embolism developed in collaboration with the European Respiratory Society (ERS), Eur Heart J l 2019.
8. Strandberg K. The clinical use of -dimer assay, acutecaretesting.org, June 2017

MAPSSS-000468 R1

Cookies are used on this website

Use of cookies
Confirm your account with Radiometer

Please enter a valid email

CONTINUE
By submitting your e-mail you agree to the data policy notice
Radiometer is using Microsoft Azure Active Directory to authenticate customer access. If you are already registered you will be taken to Microsoft AD to sign in using your Microsoft AD credentials.
You are already registered
Radiometer is using Microsoft Azure AD to authenticate customer access. If you are already registered you will be taken to AZURE to sign in using your AZURE credentials.
Thank you

We will be sending an e-mail invitation to you shortly to sign in using Microsoft Azure AD.

Radiometer is using Microsoft Azure AD to authenticate customer access.
Sorry

It seems that your e-mail is not registered with us

Radiometer is using Microsoft Azure AD to authenticate customer access. If your e-mail is not registered with us please click CONTINUE and we will guide you through the sign-in process.
We have previously sent an invitation by e-mail

Please click "Get started" in the e-mail to complete the registration process

Radiometer is using Microsoft Azure AD to authenticate customer access.
Sorry

We were not able to process your request due to a communication error

Sorry

It seems this account has not been given access to the portal

Radiometer is using Microsoft AZURE Active Directory to authenticate users

Radiometer uses Azure AD to provide our customers and partners secure access to documents, resources, and other services on our customer portal.

If your organization is already using Azure AD you can use the same credentials to access Radiometer's customer portal.

Key benefits

       
  • Allow the use of existing Active Directory credentials
  • Single-sign on experience
  • Use same credentials to access future services

Request access

You will receive an invitation to access our services via e-mail when your request has been approved.

When you accept the invitation, and your organization is already using AZURE AD, you can use the same credentials to access Radiometer's customer portal. Otherwise, a one-time password will be sent via e-mail to sign in.