A Statistical Study of Postoperative Venous Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism. I. Incidence. in Various Types of Operations

Primary Deep Venous Thrombosis of Upper Extremity

“…Unusual manifestations observed, which will be presented in brief detail, are: (1) pulmonary emboli in three patients, (2) venous gangrene in one pa¬ tient, (3) a localized occlusion with large collateral vessels intermittently occluded by exercise and with symptoms relieved by claviculectomy, and (4) a successful result following venous thrombectomy.…”

The Prediction of Thromboembolism

“…Individuals with a past history of thromboembolism in any form are very highly prone to repetition when exposed to those altered physiologic states known to predispose toward hypercoagulability (7,8).…”

Anticoagulant Therapy in Thrombosis and Embolism

“…25 In many cases the source of the first embolus is unknown since there is no clinical evidence of venous thrombosis or thrombophlebitis, but the patient is marked as having a tendency to thrombosis. Table I illustrates the effectiveness of anticoagulant therapy in cases of postoperative pulmonary embolism.…”

“…Venous thrombosis afflicts only about 1 per cent and fatal embolism only about 0.2 per cent of unselected patients who have undergone operation. 26 Special supervision and at least one daily blood test are necessary when anticoagulant therapy is being used, and the risk of bleeding is somewhat higher in those cases in which thrombosis has never occurred than in those in which it has. However, an increased risk of postoperative thrombosis follows laparotomy in the presence of obesity, varicose veins, heart disease, anemia, infection, or a malignant neoplasm, and prophylactic anticoagulant therapy may be justified in such cases.…”