Lower Extremity Deep Vein Research Articles

(125) INTRAPARTUM AND 30-DAY POSTPARTUM COMPLICATIONS IN PREGNANCIES WITH ANTENATAL SARS-COV-2 INFECTION

Abstract Introduction While COVID-19 has been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, data regarding intrapartum and postpartum maternal complications after antenatal COVID-19 infection is limited and variable. Objective This study compares the intrapartum and postpartum complication rates between pregnant patients with and without an antenatal COVID-19 diagnosis in a national dataset. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study of patients who gave birth between January 2020 and May 2023 utilizing the TriNetx Analytics Research Network, an aggregated electronic health record platform. Our data searches were performed on May 1, 2023. ICD-10 codes were used to identify the encounter for delivery (ICD-10 code O80-O82) and pregnant individuals with a COVID-19 diagnosis (ICD-10 code U70.1) during their gestational period. The control group was defined as those with one encounter for delivery between January 2020 and May 2023 and without a diagnosis of COVID-19 during the gestational period. Complications included obstetric, cardiovascular, neurovascular, and pulmonary outcomes diagnosed from the day of delivery to 30 days postpartum. The cohort was propensity matched by age, race, and ethnicity. The relative risk values and 95% confidence intervals for the outcomes were calculated and compared. Results Of the 368,923 patients who had an encounter for delivery between January 2020 and May 2023, 26,974 (7%) had an antenatal COVID-19 diagnosis. Compared to our matched control cohort, patients with antenatal COVID-19 were at an increased risk of postpartum hemorrhage (RR 1.24, 95% CI 1.16-1.33), gestational hypertension without significant proteinuria (1.27 [1.21-1.34]), pre-eclampsia (1.25 [1.18-1.32]), eclampsia (1.66 [1.29-2.23]), and preterm labor (1.21 [1.12-1.31]). Patients with antenatal COVID-19 infections were also at an increased risk of postpartum complications, including cerebral infarction (1.74 [1.04-2.90]), pulmonary embolism (2.68 [1.74-4.13]), acute embolism and thrombosis of deep veins of lower extremity (2.32 [1.45-3.71]), sepsis (2.21 [1.54-3.19]), heart failure (1.55 [1.04-2.31]), and cardiomyopathy (2.08 [1.30-3.32]). There was no elevated risk of HELLP syndrome (1.18 [0.96-1.44]), placental abruption (1.14 [0.94-1.37]), and myocardial infarction (1.4 [0.62-3.15]). Conclusions Pregnant individuals with antenatal COVID-19 diagnosis were more likely to have intrapartum and postpartum encounter diagnoses for obstetric, cardiovascular, neurovascular, and pulmonary complications. This data allows providers to identify antenatal COVID-19 infection as a risk factor and monitor patients for complications. Disclosure No.

S937 Venous Thromboembolism in the Setting of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Multi-Centric Retrospective Analysis

Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a systemic inflammatory condition with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). The most common sites include deep veins of lower extremities and pulmonary vasculature, and rarely cerebrovascular veins which can significantly increase morbidity and mortality. While the higher incidence of VTE in IBD has been well established, standardized risk assessment models for VTE do not consider the presence of IBD as a high-risk factor. Methods: A retrospective chart review of 261 randomly selected patients with IBD over the last 5 years was performed. Patients with an incidence of VTE in the last 5 years (2017-2022) were identified. Baseline characteristics, site of VTE, use of anticoagulation for VTE prophylaxis, and anticoagulant used were collected. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the incidence of VTE and the percentage of patients on anticoagulation. Results: The 5-year incidence of VTE in the studied 259 patients was 13.51% (35) of which 11.2% (29) had DVT, 3.5% (9) had both DVT and PE, and 2.3% (6) had only PE. The average age of the patients with VTE was 57.4 ± 12.3 years; 37% (13) were men and 63% (22) were women; 66% (23) were Caucasian, 31% (11) were African American, and 3% (1) were Pacific-islander. Of the 259 patients, 133 (51.4%) received VTE prophylaxis during hospitalizations, while 126 (48.6%) did not. Of the patients who received prophylaxis, the incidence of VTE was 4.5% (6 of 133) whereas the incidence was 23% (29 of 126) in those who did not receive VTE prophylaxis. Of the 133 patients who were on anticoagulation, 11 were on NOACs (8.3%), 38 were on heparin (28.6%), 81 were on LMWH (60.9%), and 3 were on warfarin (2.2%). Of the 6 patients who had an incidence of VTE on anticoagulation, 3 were on NOACs, 1 was on heparin, 1 was on LMWH, and 1 was on warfarin. Conclusion: Being a chronic inflammatory state, IBD is associated with a 2-3 times higher incidence of VTE. However, multiple factors exist in both the pathophysiology and treatment of the disease that may contribute to the development of VTE. Numerous factors such as surgeries, use of steroids, and gender have been implicated in increasing the risk for VTE. There is a wide scope for further research regarding the same. Despite conclusive evidence, at most centers, the presence of IBD is not considered to be a high-risk factor for VTE warranting anticoagulation. Awareness and education are the cornerstones to cause a momentous change in practice patterns.Figure 1.: Proportion of IBD patients on different anticoagulants and the incidence of VTE while on them

Contemporary Treatment of Pulmonary Embolism: Medical Treatment and Management.

Pulmonary embolus (PE) is defined as obstruction of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches by material (e.g., thrombus, tumor, air, or fat) but most commonly due to thrombus originating from the lower extremity deep veins. We reviewed the current literature describing the optimal medical treatment and management of PE. Databases (PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, EBSCO, Web of Science, and CINAHL) were searched for relevant studies and guidelines for management of patients with PE. The initial approach to patients with suspected PE should focus upon stabilizing the patient while further workup for risk stratification is in progress. In most cases, anticoagulation should ideally be started even prior to confirming PE, if risk-benefit regarding suspicion of PE and bleeding risk is favorable. Once the diagnosis is confirmed, risk stratification will guide further therapies consisting of anticoagulation, thrombolysis, or catheter-directed interventions. Data for initial, long-term, and indefinite anticoagulation, and factors that determine whether or not a patient can be treated in the outpatient setting, are reviewed and discussed.

Added value of computed tomography venography in the identification of abnormities in veins of lower extremities

Objective To investigate the efficacy of direct computed tomography venography (CTV) in early and accurate detection of lower extremity venous (LEV) abnormalities. Methods Cross-sectional research was conducted in Hebei General Hospital of China. A total of 211 CTV reports of both lower extremities from January 2017 to September 2019, 75 color Doppler ultrasound (DUS) examinations, and eight intravascular angiography records of these patients over the same period were collected from the hospital. Comparisons were made for the reported number and percentage of LEV abnormalities (thrombosis, stenosis including severe stenosis, and varicosities). Chi-square test and t-test were applied to compare the rates and means, respectively. Significance level α was 0.05. Individual interviews were performed to understand the perceptions of medical staff and patients on the application of CTV, and the interview results were analyzed. Results Of the 75 cases with both CTV and DUS reports, 159 abnormalities occurring in the lower extremity deep veins (LEDV) were reported, among which 125 (79%) and 18 (11%) were reported by CTV and DUS on a single basis, respectively, whereas 16 (10%) were reported by CTV and DUS simultaneously. A statistically significant greater number of abnormalities in LEDV were identified by CTV than DUS in both males and females (χ 2 males = 78.449, χ 2 females = 27.574, χ 2 total = 104.164, p < .05). In the 211 CTV reports, among the 383 abnormalities reported in total, the common iliac vein (CIV) had the highest number of reported abnormalities (132, 34.5%), followed by the femoral vein (93, 24.3%). The ratios between LEDV abnormality and patient numbers were 1.055 and 0.688 for left and right sides in males, and 0.892 and 0.461 for left and right sides in females, respectively, with that for the left side statistically significantly higher than the right one (t male = 2.896, t female = 4.347, p < .05). The incidence of thrombosis was 10.9% (95% CI = 6.7 ∼ 15.1%). Reported abnormities in CIV by CTV were in agreement with those by intravascular angiography. The medical staff believed that CTV could guide the performance of surgeries for LEV and the patients perceived CTV acceptable. Conclusions Application of CTV for early and accurate detection of LEDV abnormalities including thrombosis has been proven to be efficient. Corresponding benefit in early intervention and reduction of severe complications of such abnormalities is of important value. CTV earned good recognition from medical staff and patients. Hence, it could be considered as part of global health assistance cooperation with developing countries to facilitate enhanced medical services.

A United States national analysis of basic demographics and commodities in sudden cardiac arrest

Abstract Background Cardiac arrest is a condition associated with high mortality rate and can cause significant social-economical burden in United States. Our study aim is to analyze the basic demographic of patients admitted for cardiac arrest and the incidence of complications following cardiac arrest. Methods Using the National Inpatient Sample from 2016–2018, we identified all the hospital admissions with a primary diagnosis code at discharge for cardiac arrest during the study period. We identified the basic characteristics including age, gender, race and admitting hospital status. The set primary outcome was inpatient mortality, length of stay (LOS) and total costs of admission. The secondary outcomes were the incidence of acute kidney injury, acute blood loss anemia, acute embolism and thrombosis of deep veins of lower extremity (DVT), pulmonary embolism, non-traumatic intracranial hemorrhage, and thromboembolic stroke. Multivariable logistic regression model analysis was performed to address potential confounders. The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was used to adjust for the severity of each patient's co-morbidities. Results A total of 44,655 patients was admitted for cardiac arrest during the study period. Mean age was 64 years; 56% were men; 63% were white, 20.7% were black, 9.2% were latino, 2.8% were Asian or pacific Islander. The total in-hospital mortality was 73.5%. The average length of stay was 4.2 days and the average total costs of admission was 83,516 dollars. Among the seven demographic characteristics: age, gender, race, hospital size, hospital region, hospital teaching status, insurance type; only hospital teaching status and hospital size were found to significantly impact the mortality. Acute kidney injury was the most common complication in post-cardiac arrest patient (42%), followed by acute blood loss anemia (3.6%), pulmonary embolism (2.3%) and DVT (2.1%). Thromboembolic stroke (0.2%) and non-traumatic intracranial hemorrhage (0.1%) are less common. During subgroup analysis, acute kidney injury was also found out to be a predictive factor of increased mortality (OR 1.64, p&amp;lt;0.001). Conclusion Cardiac arrest remains one of the conditions with highest mortality rate. In our study, age, gender or race dit not impact on the outcome of cardiac arrest. Among all the complications from cardiac arrest, acute kidney injury was the most common one and was associated with higher mortality rate. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

Budd-Chiari syndrome in Behçet's disease: a retrospective multicenter study.

To compare the clinical features, laboratory findings, and prognosis of Behçet's disease (BD) patients with and without Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS). This multicenter retrospective study investigated 61 (M/F: 41/20) patients with BD, having coexistent BCS, and 169 (M/F:100/69) BD patients as the control group without BCS from 22 different centers of Turkey diagnosed between 1990 and 2017. Of the total 61 BD patients with BCS, the onset of the first symptom and the median age of diagnosis were earlier in contrast to BD patients without BCS (p = 0.005 and p = 0.007). Lower extremity deep vein and inferior vena cava (IVC) thrombosis were more common in patients with BCS (all; p < 0.01) compared to the control group. Mortality was significantly higher in BD-BCS patients with IVC thrombosis than in the controls (p = 0.004). Since most of the cases in our cohort had chronic and silent form of BCS, mortality rate was 14.8%, which was on the lower range of mortality rate reported in literature (14-47%). While all BD-BCS patients received immunosuppressive (IS) agents, only half of them received additional anticoagulant treatments. Among IS agents, interferon treatment was more frequently used in this cohort (19%), compared to other series reported in literature (2.3%). To our knowledge, this is the largest series of BD patients with BCS. Our patients had earlier disease onset and diagnosis, higher frequency of IVC thrombosis, and higher mortality rate, compared to BD patients without BCS. Mortality was significantly higher in BD-BCS patients with IVC thrombosis compared to controls. Key Points • Mortality rate is higher in BD-associated BCS patients with IVC involvement. • Chronic and silent form of BD-associated BCS has a better prognosis. • The main treatment options are corticosteroids and immunosuppressive agents, whereas anticoagulant treatment remains controversial.

In situ Pulmonary Artery Thrombosis: A Previously Overlooked Disease.

Pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) is the third leading cause of death in cardiovascular diseases. PTE is believed to be caused by thrombi detached from deep veins of lower extremities. The thrombi travel with systemic circulation to the lung and block pulmonary arteries, leading to sudden disruption of hemodynamics and blood gas exchange. However, this concept has recently been challenged by accumulating evidence demonstrating that de novo thrombosis may be formed in pulmonary arteries without deep venous thrombosis. On the other hand, chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), a subtype of pulmonary hypertension, could have different pathogenesis than traditional PTE. Therefore, this article summarized and compared the risk factors, the common and specific pathogenic mechanisms underlying PTE, in situ pulmonary artery thrombosis, and CTEPH at molecular and cellular levels, and suggested the therapeutic strategies to these diseases, aiming to facilitate understanding of pathogenesis, differential diagnosis, and precision therapeutics of the three pulmonary artery thrombotic diseases.

A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY TO EVALUATE THE ROLE OF COLOUR DOPPLER SONOGRAPHY IMAGING IN CLINICALLY SUSPECTED PATIENTS WITH LOWER EXTREMITY DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS

AIMS &amp; OBJECTIVES- The aim of the study was to evaluate by duplex sonography normal appearance of deep veins of lower extremity and appearance of thrombus in clinically suspected patients of DVT. MATERIALS AND METHOD- This study was conducted on Siemens Acuson X-700 machine in the department of Radiodiagnosis at SRMSIMS Bareilly in 50 patients presented with clinical suspicion of leg pain. They were evaluated by color duplex sonography in Department of Radiodiagnosis. RESULTS- On color duplex sonography 42 patients were detected and conrmed for DVT .On sonography sensitivity for test was 82%. DISCUSSION- The diagnosis of DVT has always been troublesome. The characteristics signs and symptoms that can be associated with DVT and the fact that many thrombi are having no symptoms make it exceedingly difcult to rely on the clinical diagnosis. The management of patients with clinical presentation of DVT in the lower extremity needs precise diagnosis of thrombus, its nature, location and extent. CONCLUSION- It is conclusively accepted that Color Doppler USG is non invasive, efcient, easily, repeatable, widely available and sensitive diagnostic tool in diagnosis of lower limb DVT.

Treatment of superficial and perforator reflux and deep venous stenosis improves healing of chronic venous leg ulcers

ObjectiveTo evaluate the impact of three treatment modalities, superficial truncal vein ablation, perforator vein ablation, and deep venous stenting on venous leg ulcer (VLU) healing, as well as their cumulative effect on ulcer healing, in an attempt to establish the best algorithm for the treatment of chronic and recalcitrant VLUs. MethodsMulticenter retrospective cohort study using a standardized database to evaluate patients with chronic venous ulcers treated between January 2013 and December 2017. ResultsEight-hundred thirty-two consecutive patients with VLU were identified at 11 centers in the United States. All patients were initially managed with wound care and compression for at least 2 months. Compression and wound care management alone, used in 187 patients, led to ulcer healing in 75% of patients by 36 months. Ulcer recurrence in patients managed without surgery at 6, 12, and 24 months was 3%, 5% and 15%, respectively. Five hundred twenty-eight patients underwent ablation of incompetent superficial veins, and 344 of those also underwent incompetent perforator ablation. Patients who underwent truncal vein ablation alone had an ulcer healing rate of 51% at 36 months. Patients who received both superficial and perforator ablation were significantly younger, and had a 17% improvement in healing at 36 months (68% vs 51%, respectively), but there was no impact of combined superficial and perforator ablations on ulcer recurrence rates. One hundred thirty-four patients had stenosis of one of more lower extremity deep veins and 95 (71%) underwent endovenous stenting. Ulcer healing and recurrence rates for those who underwent stent placement alone was 77% and 27%, respectively, at 36 months. Patients who underwent deep venous stenting and ablation of both incompetent truncal and perforator veins had an ulcer healing rate of 87% at 36 months and ulcer recurrence of 26% at 24 months. ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that correction of superficial truncal vein reflux, as well as deep vein stenosis, both contribute to healing of VLU. Patients who fail to heal their VLU after superficial and perforator ablation should have the iliocaval system imaged to identify hemodynamically significant stenoses or occlusions amenable to stenting, which facilitates venous ulcer healing even in patients with large ulcers.

Biliary tract cancers and the associated risk of venous thromboembolism.

304 Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common cause of morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. Because biliary tract cancers (BTC) cholangiocarcinoma and gallbladder (GB) cancer are uncommon, the incidence of VTE in this population are not well-described. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of patients with BTC identified by the cancer registry at the Los Angeles County-University of Southern California (USC) Medical Center, USC Norris Cancer Center, and USC Keck Hospital between January 2011 to December 2016 to describe the incidence of VTE. 330 BTC patients’ medical records were reviewed for demographics, tumor characteristics, treatment history, and VTE events. 41 patients were excluded due to incomplete records/follow-up. Overall survival (OS) was calculated from date of diagnosis to date of death or last follow-up. Logrank test was used to evaluate the association of VTE with OS. Results: 289 patients with BTC were identified (177 cholangiocarcinoma, 112 GB) with a median follow-up period of 16.7 (0.3-89.0) months (mo). 169 (58%) were women. The median age at diagnosis of 66 years (range 22-89). 144 (59%) underwent cancer surgery and 274 (95%) received chemotherapy. 65 (22%) patients had VTE events: 22 pulmonary embolism [PE] with or without lower extremity (LE) deep vein thrombosis [DVT], 15 with LE DVT alone, three with upper extremity DVT, and 30 with visceral thrombosis (27 portal vein thrombosis [PVT] with or without inferior vena cava thrombosis [IVC], 2 IVC thrombosis, two hepatic vein thrombosis). Five patients had both DVT/PE and visceral thrombosis. The median time from cancer diagnosis to VTE event was not met. Patients with a PVT or any visceral thrombosis had an inferior OS compared to those without (PVT: median OS 16.2 mo [95% CI 12.2-25.8] versus 7.5 [3.4-14.2], p = 0.10, visceral thrombosis: 17.0 mo [95% CI 11.8-25.9] versus 8.4 [95% CI 3.7-14.3], p = 0.30). There was a non-significant trend towards inferior OS in patients with any VTE event type (median OS 17.0 mo [95% CI 11.8-39.0] versus 11.4 [95% CI 7.2-18.4], p = 0.10). There was no difference in OS for patients with PE/DVT compared to those without. Conclusions: VTE is commonly observed in patients with BTC. Visceral thrombosis is associated with inferior survival in patients with BTC.

Heparininduced thrombocytopenia in patients with venous thromboembolic complications – clinical cases and review of the literature

Severe thrombocytopenia significantly (at times and dozens of times) increases in-hospital mortality, especially for General surgical, vascular, orthopedic and traumatological patients in comparison with cardiosurgery and interventional cardiac patients. Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia is immune-mediated complication, paradoxically accompanied by frequent thrombosis. The risk of thrombosis varies from 30–50% for moderate and up to 90% in severe thrombocytopenia. Venous thrombosis predominate over the arterial, especially thrombosis of deep veins of lower extremities and pulmonary thromboembolia. Strokes, acute myocardial infarction, thrombosis of the mesenteric, vertebral arteries, central catheters are also not rare. The delay in diagnosis and in cessation of the heparins, the use of tromboconcentrate, not appointment of alternative anticoagulants – all of it worsen prognosis and increase mortality. Currently, in order to assess the possibility of Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia «Scale 4 T» is often in usage. It contains inaccuracies and provides 4 criteria and 3 degrees, that to some extent complicates its use. In early 2014, on the basis of literature analysis and own experience, we have developed a simplified «Rule» for the rapid diagnosis of this condition. Key points are highlighted in review regarding the pathophysiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, aspects of modern management, as well as the economic impact of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and clinical examples in surgical patients confirmed by immunoassay. The next message will show a 3-year analysis of the incidence, causes, dynamics of outcomes in a multidisciplinary hospital, and the results of the implementation of the original «Rule».

The sources of emboli in patients with pulmonary embolism diagnosed by autopsy

Objective: To study the sources of emboli in patients with pulmonary embolism diagnosed by autopsy, and therefore to provide help in the diagnosis and treatment of thromboembolism. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the pathology and clinical data of 43 patients with pulmonary embolism diagnosed by autopsy from 1962 to 2012 in Beijing Hospital. Results: In patients with pulmonary embolism diagnosed by autopsy, 32.6% of the emboli came from deep veins of the lower extremities, 9.3% from the renal vein, 9.3% from the prostate sinus, 7.0% from the venous plexus around the prostate, 7.0% from the hepatic vein and 7.0% from the submucosal vein of the bladder. Other sources included the right atrium 4.7%, portal vein 4.7%, pancreatic peripheral vein 4.7%, prostate, heart, esophageal vein 4.7%, right common iliac vein 2.3%, right upper limb brachial vein 2.3%. No source of emboli was found in 4.7% patients with pulmonary embolism. Non-lower extremity deep vein emboli accounted for 60.5%. Only 9.3% of the cases were diagnosed with pulmonary embolism with deep vein thrombosis before death. Conclusion: There was a wide range of sources of emboli in patients with pathologically proven pulmonary embolism. Although the deep veins of lower extremities are the most common, more than 60% of the emboli came from the renal vein, prostate vein, hepatic vein and other abdominal or pelvic veins, the heart, and the upper extremity deep veins. In addition to the lower extremity deep veins, other sources of emboli should be actively examined when the patient was diagnosed with acute pulmonary embolism.

Clinical features of hospitalized patients with deep venous thrombosis

Objective: To increase the consciousness of incident deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in hospitalized patients. Methods: This is a retrospective study of hospitalized patients with DVT in Beijing Shijitan Hospital from 2007 to 2016. Clinical features of DVT patients who were admitted with no DVT were summarized. The demographic and epidemiological characteristics, involved site of veins, department of patients and risk factors were discussed. Results: A total of 5 063 patients were complicated with DVT from 305 922 inpatients who were without DVT at the admission during past 10 years. Among them, 54.36% (2 752/5 063) were men. The age of the patients was (74.1±15.9) years old (range 1-103 years) with 37.78% of them in 80 to 89 age group. The incidence of DVT in the hospital was 1.65%. It increased yearly during the past decade (from 0.50% to 2.74%), and increased with age in patients from 1 to 99 years old (7.32% in 90-99 age group). Totally, 5 204 veins were involved in the patients. Most thrombosis involved inferior vena cava system (96.54%,5 024/5 204), especially deep veins of lower extremity (83.78%,4 360/5 204), some involved portal veins (8.61%,448/5 204) and a little was found in superior venae cava (3.46%, 180/5 204). More DVT patients were in department of internal medicine than those in department of surgery (2.95% vs 0.97%, P<0.01). ICU had the highest rate of DVT among the hospital departments (9.75%). No DVT occurred in department of newborn. Risk factors of DVT were inflammatory diseases (71.54%), age over 75 years old (67.25%), and heart diseases (58.98%). Conclusion: Sensitivity of detection on DVT should be emphasized in hospitalized patients with DVT risk, especially at the department with high incident of DVT.

Qualitative Slow Blood Flow in Lower Extremity Deep Veins on Doppler Sonography: Quantitative Assessment and Preliminary Evaluation of Correlation With Subsequent Deep Venous Thrombosis Development in a Tertiary Care Oncology Center

To determine whether the qualitative sonographic appearance of slow deep venous flow in the lower extremities correlates with quantitative slow flow and an increased risk of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in oncology patients. In this Institutional Review Board-approved retrospective study, we reviewed lower extremity venous Doppler sonographic examinations of 975 consecutive patients: 482 with slow flow and 493 with normal flow. The subjective slow venous flow and absence of initial DVT were confirmed by 2 radiologists. Peak velocities were recorded at 3 levels. Each patient was followed for DVT development. The associations between DVT and the presence of slow venous flow were examined by the Fisher exact test; a 2-sample t test was used for peak velocity and DVT group comparisons. The optimal cutoff peak velocity for correlation with the radiologists' perceived slow flow was determined by the Youden index. Deep venous thrombosis development in the slow-flow group (21 of 482 [4.36%]) was almost doubled compared with patients who had normal flow (11 of 493 [2.23%]; P = .0456). Measured peak venous velocities were lower in the slow-venous flow group (P < .001). Patients with subsequent DVT did not have a significant difference in venous velocities compared with their respective patient groups. The sum of 3 venous level velocities resulted in the best cutoff for dichotomizing groups into normal versus slow venous flow. Qualitative slow venous flow in the lower extremities on Doppler sonography accurately correlates with quantitatively slower flow, and this preliminary evaluation suggests an associated mildly increased rate of subsequent DVT development in oncology patients.

NATIONWIDE CONTEMPORARY TRENDS IN ADJUNCTIVE ANGIOPLASTY AND STENTING AT THE TIME OF CATHETER DIRECTED THROMBOLYSIS IN PATIENTS WITH PROXIMAL LOWER EXTREMITY DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS

Background: Catheter directed thrombolysis (CDT) is being increasingly utilized in the treatment of patients with proximal lower extremity (LE) deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Although angioplasty and stenting may be required at the time of CDT, the nationwide trends in the use of these adjunctive

Genetic risk factors in patients with deep venous thrombosis, a retrospective case control study on Iranian population.

BackgroundVenous thromboembolism (VTE) could be manifested as deep venous thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE). DVT is usually the more common manifestation and is usually formation of a thrombus in the deep veins of lower extremities. DVT could occur without known underlying cause (idiopathic thrombosis) which could be a consequence of an inherited underlying risk factor or could be a consequence of provoking events, such as trauma, surgery or acute illness (provoked thrombosis). Our aim in this study was to assess the impact of some previously reported genetic risk factors including, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T and A1298C, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1(PAI-1) 4G/5G, prothrombin 20210 and FV Leiden on occurrence of DVT in a population of Iranian patients.MethodsThis long-term study was conducted on 182 patients with DVT and also 250 age and sex matched healthy subjects as control group. The diagnosis of DVT was based on patient’s history, clinical findings, D-dimer test, and confirmed by Doppler ultrasonography. After confirmation of DVT, both groups were assessed for the five mentioned mutations. The relationship between mutations and predisposition to DVT was calculated by using logistic regression and expressed as an OR with a 95 % confidence interval (CI).ResultsOur results revealed that FV Leiden (OR 6.7; 95 % CI = 2.2 to 20.3; P = 0.001), MTHFR C677T (OR 6.0; 95 % CI = 2.2 to 16.4; P < 0.001), MTHFR A1298C (OR 8.3; 95 % CI = 4.4 to 15.8; P < 0.001), and PAI-1 4G/5G (OR 3.8; 95 % CI = 2.1 to 7.2; P < 0.001) mutations were all significantly associated with an increased risk of DVT. Prothrombin 20210 was found in none of the patients and controls.ConclusionOur findings suggest that genetic risk factors have a contributory role on occurrence of DVT.

Behçet's syndrome: pulmonary vascular disease.

Pulmonary artery involvement (PAI) due to Behçet's syndrome, although rare, has always been a focus of interest not only in endemic areas but also in many parts of the world. This interest is shared by many disciplines other than internal medicine, such as radiology, cardiothoracic surgery, cardiology and respiratory medicine. Most importantly, our understanding of PAI has significantly changed in recent years. Recent work found the following: pulmonary artery aneurysms are not the only form of PAI. Solo 'in-situ' pulmonary artery thrombosis (PAT) can be found in up to one-third of the patients at presentation. Both pulmonary artery aneurysms and PAT present with similar clinical symptoms, whereas abundant hemoptysis is less frequent in PAT. PAI is strongly associated with thrombosis in the lower-extremity deep veins and right side of the heart. Varying and multiple pulmonary parenchymal lesions such as nodules, consolidations and cavities are part of this involvement as well. While either aneurysms or thrombosis could disappear successfully with immunosuppressives in up to 70% of the patients, the condition can be fatal still in one-fourth. Large aneurysms and high pulmonary artery pressures are associated with a poor prognosis. Although we now know the condition and its associated complications better, we need to study how we can predict development of PAI, its pathogenesis and finally what can we do to improve the survival.

Forkhead box C2 Promoter Variant c.-512C&gt;T Is Associated with Increased Susceptibility to Chronic Venous Diseases

Chronic venous disease (CVD) is one of the most prevalent yet underrated disorders worldwide. High heritability estimates of CVD indicate prominent genetic components in its etiology and pathology. Mutations in human forkhead box C2 (FoxC2) gene are strongly associated with valve failure in saphenous and deep veins of lower extremities. We explored the association of genetic variants of FoxC2 as well as FoxC2 mRNA and protein expression levels with CVD of lower limbs. We systematically sequenced the single coding exon, 5′ and 3′ flanking regions of FoxC2 gene in 754 study subjects which includes 382 patients with CVD and 372 healthy subjects. Four novel and three reported polymorphisms were identified in our cohort. Three variants in 5′ flanking region and one in 3′ flanking region of FoxC2 gene were significantly associated with CVD risk. FoxC2 mRNA in vein tissues from 22 patients was 4±1.42 fold increased compared to saphenous veins from 20 normal subjects (p<0.01). FoxC2 protein was also significantly upregulated in varicose veins compared to control samples. The c.-512C>T (rs34221221: C>T) variant which is located in the FoxC2 putative promoter region was further analyzed. Functional analysis of c.-512C>T revealed increased mRNA and protein expression in patients with homozygous TT genotype compared to heterozygous CT and wild CC genotypes. Luciferase assay indicated higher transcriptional activity of mutant compared to wild genotype of this variant. These findings suggested that c.-512C>T variant of FoxC2 was strongly associated with susceptibility to CVD and also that this variant resulted in FoxC2 overexpression. To obtain a mechanistic insight into the role of upregulated FoxC2 in varicosities, we overexpressed FoxC2 in venous endothelial cells and observed elevated expression of arterial markers Dll4 and Hey2 and downregulation of venous marker COUP-TFII. Our study indicates altered FoxC2-Notch signaling in saphenous vein wall remodeling in patients with varicose veins.

Recent advances on the association of apoptosis in chronic non healing diabetic wound.

Generally, wounds are of two categories, such as chronic and acute. Chronic wounds takes time to heal when compared to the acute wounds. Chronic wounds include vasculitis, non healing ulcer, pyoderma gangrenosum, and diseases that cause ischemia. Chronic wounds are rapidly increasing among the elderly population with dysfunctional valves in their lower extremity deep veins, ulcer, neuropathic foot and pressure ulcers. The process of the healing of wounds has several steps with the involvement of immune cells and several other cell types. There are many evidences supporting the hypothesis that apoptosis of immune cells is involved in the wound healing process by ending inflammatory condition. It is also involved in the resolution of various phases of tissue repair. During final steps of wound healing most of the endothelial cells, macrophages and myofibroblasts undergo apoptosis or exit from the wound, leaving a mass that contains few cells and consists mostly of collagen and other extracellular matrix proteins to provide strength to the healing tissue. This review discusses the various phases of wound healing both in the chronic and acute wounds especially during diabetes mellitus and thus support the hypothesis that the oxidative stress, apoptosis, connexins and other molecules involved in the regulation of chronic wound healing in diabetes mellitus and gives proper understanding of the mechanisms controlling apoptosis and tissue repair during diabetes and may eventually develop therapeutic modalities to fasten the healing process in diabetic patients.

Characterization of Chronic Postthrombotic Intraluminal Venous Obstruction.

Acute deep venous thrombosis (DVT) managed with anticoagulation undergoes an evolution resulting in a spectrum of changes, ranging from complete recanalization to luminal obstruction. Long-term follow-up imaging of residual intraluminal pathology often reports that “chronic thrombus” remains. The concept that thrombus is present has therapeutic implications. The purpose of this investigation is to accurately characterize the intraluminal pathology existing in the lower extremity deep veins long after acute DVT.