Exploring Opportunities for Primary Prevention of Unprovoked Venous Thromboembolism: Ready for Prime Time?

ABSTRACT: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is an important vascular disease and public health problem. Prevention of VTE has focused mainly on using thromboprophylaxis to avoid provoked VTE or recurrent VTE, with little attention paid to the possibility of preventing the one third to one half of VTEs that are unprovoked. We review growing research suggesting that unhealthy lifestyle risk factors may cause a considerable proportion of unprovoked VTE. Using epidemiologic data to calculate population attributable risks, we estimate that in the United States obesity may contribute to 30% of VTEs, physical inactivity to 4%, current smoking to 3%, and Western dietary pattern to 11%. We also review possibilities for VTE primary prevention either through a high-risk individual approach or a population-wide appr

SUBMITTER: Folsom AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7763794 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature