Preoperative mini-heparin, prostatectomy and clinical pulmonary thromboembolism.

From February 1973 through May 1977, a selected group of 131 patients undergoing prostatectomy were given preoperative mini-heparin 6--8 hours prior to surgery. There were 17 retropubic prostatectomies, 1 subtotal suprapubic prostatectomy and 113 transurethral prostatic resections. Patients ages ranged from 35 to 108 years. There were 109 cases of benign prostatic hyperplasia, 13 cases of adenocarcinoma of the prostate and 9 cases of benign prostatic hyperplasia with foci of adenocarcinoma. There was one death from massive pulmonary thromboembolism and one case of non-fatal pulmonary thromboembolism. A retrospective review of 416 prostatectomies performed during the same period of time at the same hospital, in which mini-heparin was not administered preoperatively, revealed only one case of non-fatal pulmonary thromboembolism. Our study indicates that this preoperative mini-heparin regime did not effectively reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with clinical postoperative thromboembolic phenomena. There were no important side effects, such as prolonged bleeding or drug intolerance, associated with the administration of preoperative mini-heparin.