Interventional therapy for acute deep venous thrombosis: a clinical observation

Objective: To compare the clinical efficacy of catheter-directed thrombolytic therapy with that of systemic thrombolytic therapy in treating acute deep venous thrombosis (DVT). Methods: During the period from August 2008 to August 2010, a total of 44 patients with DVT were encountered in the hospital. The mean age of the patients was (42.33±8.7) years. Of the 44 patients, catheter-directed thrombolytic therapy was performed in 23 and systemic thrombolytic therapy was employed in 21. The mean interval between the onset of DVT to the start of treatment was (5.9±4.5) days. Infusion of urokinase through catheter or peripheral veins was carried out. For the residual venous narrowing after thrombolytic therapy percutaneous balloon dilation angioplasty and/or stent placement was employed. Results: Of the 23 patients receiving catheter-directed thrombolytic therapy, reopen of the obstructed vein was obtained in 20 (86.9%) and percutaneous balloon dilation angioplasty had to be carried out in 3 (13.0%). Of the 21 cases receiving systemic thrombolytic therapy, reopen of the obstructed vein was seen in 4 (20%) and death due to pulmonary embolism occurred in one. Conclusion: For the treatment of acute deep venous thrombosis the catheter-directed thrombolytic therapy is better than the systemic thrombolytic therapy. (authors)