Background: Increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) has been noted among cancer patients as compared to non-cancer. Cancer associated thrombosis caused three folds increased hospitalizations, increased inpatient/outpatient medical and prescription claims, and increased total health care costs per patient. Our objective was to study demographic, clinical and laboratory risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE) among [...]

Background: Prognostic risk scores allow clinicians to rapidly identify patients with acute pulmonary embolism (PE) at a low risk for mortality and morbidity. Current guidelines recommend that these patients be considered for outpatient treatment. Despite this, most patients with low-risk PE are still hospitalized for monitoring and initiation of anticoagulation. Interventions to improve provider awareness [...]

Background: D-dimer is one of the most commonly used tests because of its high sensitivity, but a high false positive rate prevents healthcare providers from efficiently diagnosing pulmonary embolism (PE). This leads to many patients unnecessarily undergoing CT pulmonary angiography (CTPA) scans in the emergency department (ED). This study sought to determine if there is [...]

Background: Pulmonary embolism (PE), refers to obstruction of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches by material (thrombus, tumor, air or fat) that originated elsewhere in the body.Wells criteria must be part of the clinical assessment for PE. With these criteria, we can classify patients as high probability (>6 pts), moderate (2 to 6 [...]

Background: In-hospital venous thromboembolism (VTE) remains an important preventable cause of morbidity/mortality. Multiple risk assessment models (RAMs) for VTE in hospitalized medical patients have been developed, validated, and endorsed by several national societies. Despite evidence and guidelines supporting risk stratification for VTE prevention, data suggest that prophylactic measures are not appropriately utilized. In a nation-wide [...]

Background: Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) are associated with an increased risk of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) and venous thromboembolism (VTE). Catheters that are coated or impregnated with antimicrobial and/or antithrombotic agents have been developed to prevent these complications. However, their effectiveness in preventing CLABSI and VTE is unclear. Using data from a large [...]

Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality for hospitalized patients. There are approximately 900,000 new VTE events and 100,000 VTE-related deaths every year. In the United States, more deaths occur due to VTE than breast cancer, AIDS, and motor vehicle accidents combined. VTE are considered preventable events with appropriate prophylaxis; [...]

Background: Compared with patients in the community, patients acutely hospitalized are at higher risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE), contributing to patient morbidity and mortality and healthcare costs. The need for thromboprophylaxis for post-surgical patients is well-known and the importance of thromboprophylaxis for acutely-ill hospitalized medicine patients has been increasingly accepted. We aimed to analyze [...]

Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) poses a significant risk to patients in the hospital setting, and studies have shown that VTE prophylaxis should be incorporated into the management of high-risk patients during their hospital stay. However, many of these patients are still high-risk for VTE at the time of discharge and for up to three months [...]

Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE), both pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep vein thrombosis (DVT), causes morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients. The duration of VTE risk in trauma, particularly after discharge, is not well understood, especially in the context of shortened hospital stays. Although guidelines provide recommendations for extended VTE prophylaxis after major orthopedic surgery, such [...]