Author(s): M Panju, D Raso, A Patel, A Panju, J GinsbergJournal Issue: Volume 41: Issue 4: 2011 Format Abstract Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis is effective in the prevention of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in medical patients. Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed on medical inpatients at two academic hospitals in Hamilton, Ontario to investigate if patients received VTE prophylaxis as per current guidelines. Results: An analysis was performed on 762 patient charts and 170 met inclusion criteria for use of pharmacological VTE prophylaxis. Of these, 91 (54%) received pharmacological VTE prophylaxis. In 63 patients with a contraindication to pharmacological VTE prophylaxis, 16 (25%) received non-pharmacological VTE prophylaxis. Conclusion: The provision rate of pharmacological VTE prophylaxis in hospitalised medical patients who met pre-defined clinical criteria for prophylaxis was 54%. The rate of prophylaxis increased with additional VTE risk factors to a peak rate of 67%. There is room for the development of strategies to improve the use of VTE prophylaxis in hospitalised medical patients PDF https://www.rcpe.ac.uk/sites/default/files/panju_0.pdf Journal Keywords: Venous thromboembolismprophylaxisdeep vein thrombosis