Preoperative venography. A risk factor for postoperative deep venous thrombosis in hip arthroplasty patients?

The incidence of postoperative deep venous thrombosis was compared between patients who had or had not received a preoperative screening venogram. No statistically significant difference in the deep venous thrombosis rate was noted postoperatively. Thirty percent of patients who received a preoperative venogram developed postoperative deep venous thrombosis, and 28% of those who did not have a preoperative venogram developed postoperative deep venous thrombosis. These results suggest that an orthopaedic surgeon may order a preoperative venogram for a patient at potential high risk of thromboembolic complications without predisposing the patient to an increased risk of postoperative deep venous thrombosis.