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Awareness regarding venous thromboembolism among internal medicine practitioners in M exico: a national cross‐sectional study
Author(s) -
MajlufCruz A.,
Castro Martinez G.,
Herrera Cornejo M. A.,
LiceagaCravioto G.,
EspinosaLarrañaga F.,
GarciaChavez J.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
internal medicine journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.596
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-5994
pISSN - 1444-0903
DOI - 10.1111/j.1445-5994.2011.02646.x
Subject(s) - medicine , cross sectional study , pulmonary embolism , deep vein , venous thromboembolism , complication , thrombosis , gold standard (test) , venous thrombosis , risk factor , emergency medicine , risk stratification , pathology
Background Venous thromboembolism ( VTE ) affects millions of patients worldwide and is responsible for thousands of hospitalisations annually. Aims To evaluate the awareness regarding VTE among Mexican internists. Methods We designed a cross‐sectional survey using a questionnaire applied to Mexican internists mainly during academic meetings. Results We collected 1220 questionnaires. VTE was considered a potential complication for medical inpatients by 85% of the respondents, whereas 69% and 63%, respectively, considered pulmonary embolism to be a complication of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and a cause of death. Awareness of some VTE risk factors was adequate, and 85% of those physicians surveyed routinely observed patients for these risk factors, although only 58% performed global risk stratification. Only 12% of the respondents considered length of hospital stay as a risk factor, and 58% assumed that the risk decreases after hospital discharge; 64% and 49% responded that the risk is higher, and VTE risk factors are more frequent in surgical versus medical inpatients respectively. VTE diagnosis was reported as easy or very easy for 59% of the respondents, but only 41% regarded phlebography as the gold standard for diagnosing DVT, although 85% of the respondents reported that d ‐dimer + Doppler ultrasound was an alternative. Pulmonary arteriography or helical computed tomography CT scan was the gold standard for diagnosing pulmonary embolism for 60% of the physicians, but 55% responded that electrocardiogram, arterial gasometry and chest X‐ray are also useful. Conclusions Awareness regarding VTE risk factors and the degree of diagnostic skills among Mexican internal medicine specialists are low.