Ambulatory Versus In-Hospital Treatment of Proximal Lower-Limb Deep Vein Thrombosis in Adults: A Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Complications of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) are related to adequacy of initial anticoagulant therapy. In this study, we analyze consecutive patients with lower-limb proximal DVT and compare the characteristics, treatment, and clinical outcomes of patients receiving entirely ambulatory treatment versus those hospitalized for initial treatment. METHODS: This was a retrospective study of consecutive patients with a first proximal lower-limb DVT during a 2-year period. Patients were followed for 90 days. Major end points were all-cause mortality, bleeding requiring hospitalization, and recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE). Events were determined for patients who were hospitalized versus those treated on an entirely ambulatory basis. RESULTS: A total of 236 patients were included in the study. Of these, 147 patients were hospitalized and 89 patients received ambulatory treatment. There were 20 fatalities-18 in-hospital and 2 in-ambulatory patients ( P = .008). By multivariable Cox regression analysis, the presence of active cancer (hazard ratio [HR] = 5.44; confidence interval [CI]: 2.16-13.7; P = .001), age (HR = 1.06; CI: 1.02-1.1; P = .001), and hospitalization (HR = 5.73; CI: 1.33-24.69; P = .019) were associated with death. Eight hospitalized and 2 ambulatory patients required readmission because of bleeding. Age was the only variable associated with bleeding (HR = 1.10; CI: 1.03-1.18; P = .004). There were no recurrent VTE events. CONCLUSION: In this study of routine management of proximal DVT, we demonstrate that patients suitable for ambulatory care are adequately identified by physicians and may be treated with equal safety and efficacy to hospitalized patients.