Basic data related to thrombolytic therapy for acute venous thrombosis.

BACKGROUND

Treatment guidelines for thrombolysis in iliofemoral deep venous thrombosis (DVT) are based on a limited number of observational and prospective studies. The acute venous thrombosis: thrombus removal with adjunctive catheter-directed thrombolysis (ATTRACT) trial will be the first large, multicenter randomized control trial to evaluate the relative advantages of several current treatment strategies. The objective of this study was to summarize the existing data that inform the use of catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) or pharmacomechanical thrombectomy in the management of acute iliofemoral DVT.

METHODS

A search of the current literature was done using PubMed, Ovid, and Cochrane databases for all available articles published up to December 2013.

RESULTS

Of those studies, which included at least 25 patients, 19 case series were identified from 1996 to 2012. Treatment groups included anticoagulation, surgical thrombectomy, pharmacomechanical thrombectomy, and CDT. Cases observed in each ranged from 26 to 101. Three studies were identified which derived data from national multicenter registries. Only 2 randomized control trials were identified from 2002 to 2012. Both support the use of CDT over anticoagulation alone for treatment of iliofemoral DVT.

CONCLUSIONS

Present treatment guidelines for acute iliofemoral DVT have been in flux and are derived from a relatively small amount of clinical data. They are summarized here in anticipation of results from the ongoing ATTRACT trial.