Outpatient treatment of acute deep venous thrombosis of the lower limbs

The outpatient management of acute deep vein thrombosis could replace the inpatient care for most patients. Fixed-dose, weight-adjusted low-molecular-weight heparins, as efficacious and safe as unfractionated heparin, allow home treatment for selected and eligible patients. The main exclusion criteria are severe renal insufficiency, high risk of bleeding, pulmonary embolism with unstable hemodynamics, allergy to heparin and suspected non-compliance. Programs for outpatient management need, after appropriate selection, adequate patient education, easy access to health-care professionals and daily follow-up during heparin treatment.