Sex, age and venous thrombosis—Are men and women indeed from different planets?

Abstract

“Mars or Venus” titled Elliot and Rubin their editorial that accompanied the landmark study which described for the first time the strikingly higher risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) in men compared with women [1,2]. This finding was unexpected, as - if at all - many people regarded women and not men at a higher risk of venous thrombosis. Indeed, large epidemiologic studies indicate slightly higher incidence rates of a first VTE in women, particularly in those at a younger age [3]. Using the data set of the MEGA study, Roach et al.