[Thrombosis prophylaxis with low doses of dextran 60 (author's transl)]

The antithrombotic effect of dextran 60 (Macrodex) was studied in a prospective, randomized trial on patients undergoing general surgery. 42 patients (group A) received 500 ml of dextran 60 intraoperatively, 49 patients (group B) received an additional dose of 100 ml dextran 60 on days 1 to 5 after operation. As tested by the 125-iodine-radiofibrinogen test 16 patients (38%) from group A, but only 2 patients (4%) from group B developed deep venous thrombosis. The difference between both groups is statistically highly significant (P less than 0,0005). The use of dextran for thromboprophylaxis was associated neither with hemorrhagic complications nor with anaphylactoid reactions. The fractionated application of a total of 1000 ml of dextran 60 resulted in a very efficient prophylaxis against deep venous thrombosis.