Thromboembolism and thromboprophylaxis in high risk surgery: facts and assumptions – a topic for emotions?

Major orthopaedic surgery is associated with serious coagulation related complications. Perioperative cardio‐respiratory and vascular dysfunction have regularly been reported in connection with hip replacement surgery and account for a mortality up to 0.5%[1–2]. Organ failure syndromes, myocardial insufficiency and infarction, brain stroke and clinical venous thromboembolism may occur from the time of the trauma and until many weeks after and account for additionally 3–4%[1–7].