Routine home treatment of deep vein thrombosis

摘要

Heparin therapy for at least five days followed by long term oral anticoagulation has been the standard care for patients with acute deep vein thrombosis. Initiation of treatment usually requires patients to be admitted to hospital for administration of intravenous unfractionated heparin and dose adjustment according to the results of the activated partial thromboplastin time. However, the emergence of low molecular weight heparin as a safe, effective, and convenient treatment for deep vein thrombosis has challenged the need for routine admission. A paper in this week's issue adds to the evidence that home treatment of deep vein thrombosis is now routinely feasible (p 1212).