However, it is unnecessarily invasive and, in most cases, not required for definitive diagnosis. The treatment recommendations for management of PE are very similar

to those detailed for DVT. Patients should be therapeutically anticoagulated in the case of radiographically www.selleckchem.com/products/Trichostatin-A.html confirmed PE or if there is a high clinical suspicion. Once again, the efficacy of treatment hinges on the ability to reach therapeutic anticoagulation within the first 24 hours of treatment.110,111 LMWH or IV LDUH can be used, but the former is preferred due to its more predictable ability to rapidly reach therapeutic levels using weight-based Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical dosing. The indications for inferior vena cava filter are detailed in the DVT discussion above. In a large meta-analysis, 22 randomized, controlled trials demonstrated that LMWH decreased recurrent thrombosis and bleeding complications when compared with IV heparin; 12 randomized, controlled trials demonstrated that thrombus size Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical reduction was more common with

LMWH; and 18 randomized, controlled trials demonstrated that SC LMWH decreased mortality when compared with IV LDUH.112 LMWH has also been demonstrated to be more cost effective with a $91,332 savings per 100 patients treated with LMWH versus IV LDUH.113 The indications Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical for preferential use of IV LDUH in therapeutic anticoagulation include patients with massive PE and despite resultant persistent hypotension, severe renal failure (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/h), or in postoperative patients where the threat of acute hemorrhage requires the ability for rapid reversal of anticoagulation. The efficacy of SC LMWH has not been evaluated in patients with massive PE and hypotension, because this group has been excluded Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical from the clinical trials

of LMWH.114 LMWH should be avoided in patients with severe renal failure as anti-Xa activity must be monitored in these patients, which is not as readily available as partial thromboplastin time (PTT) in most institutions. As just Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical discussed, weight-based dosing regimens are recommended with infusion rate adjusted to attain a PTT of 1.5 to 2.5 times the control value of the institution. As in the treatment of DVT, warfarin should be started with a parenteral agent at PE diagnosis, or as soon as is considered safe in a postoperative patient. Dosing should be adjusted for an INR of 2.5 and parenteral anticoagulation Cilengitide should be continued for 48 hours once a therapeutic INR has been reached.92 The recommended duration of anticoagulation is similar to that for DVT. If it is the patient’s first episode of VTE and there is a reversible risk factor (eg, surgery), the patient should be anticoagulated for 6 months. Attempts to decrease the duration to < 3 months have demonstrated increased rates of recurrent thromboembolism. 115,116 If it is a patient’s first episode of VTE, but there is no identifiable reversible risk factor (eg, idiopathic VTE), the patient should be anticoagulated for 6 to 12 months.