Does dipyridamole/acetylsalicylic acid or low-dose subcutaneous heparin prevent postoperative deep vein thrombosis in high-risk patients?
Low-dose subcutaneous heparin significantly reduces the incidence of postoperative deep vein thrombosis in high-risk patients compared to control or antiplatelet therapy, without increasing bleeding complications.
In a prospective randomised trial, three groups of 20 patients each were compared. A first group served as a control, a second group received dipyridamole and acetylsalicylic acid and a third group received low doses of heparin. The incidence of deep vein thrombosis determined by the 125I-fibrinogen test was 40% in the first group, 50% in the second group, and 5% in the third group. The differences between the heparin group and the two other groups are statistically significant. No wound complication and no haematoma at the injection site occurred.
Dechavanne et al. (Thu,) studied this question.