Recent incidence of deep-vein thrombosis in surgical departments, 2015 - 2022: A systematic review

Abstract

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) refers to the formation of blood clots in the major deep veins of the body and together with pulmonary embolism (PE), a complication of DVT, accounts for about 60000 to 100000 mortality cases worldwide. This review aims to provide data on recent information regarding DVT in surgical departments globally. An online search of publications was done through Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library from 2015 to July 2022 with search phrases: “epidemiology of DVT in Surgery”, “deep vein thrombosis”, “Virchow’s triad”, “diagnosis and management of DVT”, and “DVT complications”, and a total of 27 publications with a total sample size 10694 were selected and reviewed. Statistically, 50% of DVT occurs due to hospital admission and surgery. The pathogenesis of DVT follows Virchow’s triad of venous stasis, hypercoagulability, and endothelial damage. The diagnosis of DVT is done by evaluating signs, symptoms, D-dimer testing, and doppler ultrasound scans. Antithrombotic agents or mechanical prophylaxis agents remain the mainstay for the management of DVT. Recently established ACCP guidelines may be used to aid in the choice of management of patients with DVT. Lastly, three main complications of DVT exist which may be fatal or cause significant morbidity. DVT can pose a significant burden in healthcare due to complications if not managed adequately and because studies on DVT in Africa, Asia, and South America are scarce there is a need for research on DVT worldwide, therefore studies can be done in individual surgical departments, countries, and common geographic locations.