Abstract
This paper comprises a retrospective study of the incidence of death from pulmonary embolism following total hip and total knee replacement surgery in a unit which does not employ routine prophylactic anticoagulation. There were a total of 1569 patients, of whom 1362 had total hip replacements and 207, knee replacements. Fatal pulmonary embolism occurred in six patients. The need for routine prophylactic anticoagulation is questioned.
MeSH terms
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Anticoagulants / therapeutic use
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Bandages
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Cerebrovascular Disorders / mortality
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Chemoprevention
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Follow-Up Studies
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Hip Prosthesis*
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Hospitals, District / statistics & numerical data
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Hospitals, General / statistics & numerical data
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Humans
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Incidence
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Knee Prosthesis*
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Locomotion
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Myocardial Infarction / mortality
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Neoplasms / mortality
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Pulmonary Embolism / mortality*
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Pulmonary Embolism / prevention & control
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Retrospective Studies
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Scotland / epidemiology
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Splints
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Weight-Bearing