Anticoagulants for the prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolism in humans exposed to microgravity: A hybrid systematic and narrative review.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

Microgravity induces physiological changes that may predispose astronauts to venous thromboembolism (VTE), yet no studies have directly evaluated the safety or efficacy of anticoagulation in this environment.

Objective

To perform a systematic review of anticoagulant use for VTE prevention and treatment in microgravity-exposed individuals and, in the absence of eligible studies, to synthesize existing physiologic and terrestrial evidence relevant to VTE risk and thromboprophylaxis.

Methods

A comprehensive search of 13 biomedical and aerospace databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, NASA Technical Reports Server, ESA archives, ClinicalTrials.gov, NASA Life Sciences Data Archive, ISS Publications Archive, DLR database, NAS

SUBMITTER: Watfa A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12856628 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature