A review on superficial venous thrombosis of the lower extremities

Abstract

Superficial venous thrombosis of the lower extremity is a common medical condition worldwide. Most of its epidemiologic data have come from the Western hemisphere suggesting female predominance and a high risk of venous thromboembolism. Initial diagnosis is still based on clinical suspicion and physical findings, but duplex ultrasound is often required to rule out concomitant deep venous thrombosis. Management options, including surgical and medical means, have been attempted with inconsistent result. In the last decade, clinical trials using anticoagulants such as low molecular weight heparin and new oral anti-Xa anticoagulants have demonstrated beneficial effects. Currently, oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories with or without compression are still the predominant initial treatment despite the proven clinical efficacy of oral anticoagulation in lowering thrombotic risk and symptom relief. In this review, most of the studies analyzed are after the year 2010 through PubMed index search and thus making it a contemporary update.

Keywords

• anticoagulation
• deep venous thrombosis
• pulmonary embolism
• superficial venous thrombosis
• venous thromboembolism