Deep venous thrombosis after emergency gastrointestinal operations: a pilot study.

In a prospective pilot study, 30 patients over 50 years of age undergoing major emergency gastrointestinal surgery were examined with the 125I-fibrinogen uptake test for postoperative deep venous thrombosis (DVT). Prophylaxis against thrombosis was at that time not used routinely for the emergency patients. The surgeon decided for each patient whether and when prophylaxis with low-dose heparin, 5,000 units twice daily, should be given. DVT was diagnosed in 11 patients (37%; 95% confidence interval 20 to 56%), in five of them bilaterally. No thrombi occurred within seven days in the patients who received low-dose heparin from the day of surgery. Major emergency gastrointestinal surgery carries a high risk of postoperative DVT.