Current treatment of acute lower extremity deep venous thrombosis

The long-term complications of acute deep venous thrombosis (DVT) include recurrence, increased mortality, and the development of the postthrombotic syndrome. Rates of recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) are elevated in patients with cancer and thrombophilia. Heparin, administered either as unfractionated or low-molecular weight, is indicated for at least five days for acute DVT. Long-term treatment is currently a vitamin K antagonist with a variable duration depending on the etiology of the DVT and risk of bleeding. Novel anticoagulant agents that target factor Xa and directly inhibit thrombin are being studied in clinical trials and may one day replace vitamin K antagonists for the long-term treatment of VTE. Interventional approaches such as percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy have the potential to reduce clot burden in acute DVT with lower bleeding risks and help prevent development of the postthrombotic syndrome, a common and potentially debilitating complication of DVT.