Clinical Study of Deep Vein Thrombosis of Lower Extremity

Lee, Jung Hun; Choi, Soojinna; Chung, Sang Yong

Abstract

Medical managements and prevention of deep vein thrombosis(DVT) continue to be a difficult problem and DVT often result in serious complications, in spite of improvements in early diagnosis of DVT. Various attemps to treat effectivly and to prevent DVT have been tried. We reviewed 82 patients who were admitted to Department of Surgery of Chonnam University Hospital for treatment of DVT from January, 1991 to May, 1997. The results were as follows. 1) There was a wide age distribution from teenage to 8th decade, and peak age distribution was 7th decade(28.0%). Sex distribution of DVT, male to female ratio, was 1 : 1.1. 2) Main chief complaint in patients with DVT was swelling of lower extremities(97.5%), and followed by pain(51.2%). The left side of lower extremities was more frequently affected than that of right side, left to right ratio was 2.2 : 1. 3) Occupations of patients with DVT were variable, fourty patients(48.8%) had no specific occupations. 4) Most frequent predisposing factor of DVT was trauma(12.2%) and followed by malignancy (11.0%) and operation(7.3%). 5) Diagnosis of DVT was made with plethysmography in all cases, and venography(25 cases), radioiodine(RI) venography with lung scan(7 cases). 6) Treatment was done with heparin and oral anticoagulant in most patients for 3 to 12 months. Fogarty thrombectomy was done in 4 cases, but adequate removal of thrombi was failed in 2 cases because the catheter couldn't be advnaced into the site of thrombi. Anticoagulant therapy was done for 2 - 4 months in 22 cases(26.8%), and 15 cases(18.3%) were continued more than 1 year. 7) During oral anticoagulant therapy, bleeding tendency was observed in 8 patients, and 7 patients were recurred. In conclusion, in some patients of DVT treatment appeals to be difficult and not effective. These patients may need prolonged anticogulant therapy more than one year.