Key result
Once-daily dalteparin therapy for DVT in a hospital-in-the-home setting achieved complete resolution at 6 months in 60.7% of distal and 18.5% of proximal thromboses, with no major bleeding.
Why the study?
Does dalteparin in a hospital-in-the-home setting improve clinical responses and ultrasonographic resolution in patients with acute lower limb DVT?
Cohort (n=100)
Does dalteparin in a hospital-in-the-home setting improve clinical responses and ultrasonographic resolution in patients with acute lower limb DVT?
Home treatment of acute lower limb DVT with once-daily dalteparin is safe, efficacious, and cost-effective, though complete resolution of thrombosis is a slow process.
Supports home dalteparin as safe for acute DVT; leaves open need for RCTs to confirm resolution benefits.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy, safety and cost savings of home treatment of lower-limb deep venous thrombosis (DVT). SETTING: A hospital-in-the-home treatment program. PATIENTS: One hundred patients with acute lower limb DVT (53 proximal, 47 distal), and no contraindication to home treatment, were entered into the program from March 1995 to February 1997. INTERVENTION: All patients received dalteparin, 200 units/kg subcutaneously, once daily for a minimum of five days, with commencement of oral anticoagulation (warfarin) on Day 2. Patients with proximal DVT had lung ventilation-perfusion scans performed and were admitted to hospital for at least 24 hours. Patients with distal DVT were discharged directly to home treatment. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Clinical responses and the results of sequential duplex ultrasonography at one week, one month, three months and six months. RESULTS: There were no major, but six minor, bleeding complications, two of which led to dalteparin being withdrawn. Sixteen patients had lung ventilation-perfusion scans showing a high probability of pulmonary embolism. All were asymptomatic, and follow-up for at least three months showed no symptomatic thromboembolic events. Duplex ultrasonography showed progression of thrombosis in the first week of therapy in 13.2% of distal and 2.7% of proximal thromboses. Thereafter, distal DVT improved at a much greater rate than proximal DVT; after six months complete resolution was seen in 60.7% of distal and 18.5% of proximal thromboses, respectively. Cost saving was $197 per bed-day equivalent compared with inpatient care. At 15 months' follow-up, swelling and/or pain was reported by 49% of patients with distal DVT and 66% of those with proximal DVT. CONCLUSIONS: Once-daily dalteparin therapy for DVT in a hospital-in-the-home setting was safe, efficacious and cost effective. However, DVT resolution is a slow process, with significant long term morbidity.
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Ting et al. (1998) conducted a cohort in acute lower limb deep venous thrombosis (DVT) (n=100). Dalteparin was evaluated on Clinical responses and the results of sequential duplex ultrasonography at one week, one month, three months and six months. Once-daily dalteparin therapy for DVT in a hospital-in-the-home setting achieved complete resolution at 6 months in 60.7% of distal and 18.5% of proximal thromboses, with no major bleeding.