Combo Therapy for Blood Clots Effective
Posted on: Wednesday, 8 October 2008, 21:00 CDT
Leg compression combined with medication such as heparin is more effective at preventing blood clots than either alone, U.S. researchers said.
Deep vein thrombosis -- that causes severe leg swelling and ulcers -- can be fatal if the clot breaks free and travels to the lungs as a pulmonary embolism.
By analyzing data from 11 trials involving 7,431 patients, Stavros Kakkos of the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit found that a combined approach to prevention reduced the risk of deep vein thrombosis from 4 in 100 to less than 1 in 100 when compared to anticoagulants -- blood thinners -- alone.
The study, published in the Cochrane Library, said that when compared to compression alone, deep vein thrombosis risk was reduced from 4 in 100 to 1 in 100.
"Our results support guidelines that already recommend the combined use of medication and leg compression to prevent deep vein blood clots," Kakkos said in a statement.
However, there is still some uncertainty as to whether the combined approach reduces a patient's risk of a life-threatening pulmonary embolism caused by a clot traveling to the lungs.
"We urgently need more studies to find out whether combined preventative approaches are also useful in preventing pulmonary embolism," Kakkos said.
Source: United Press International
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