Stratifying the risks of venous thromboembolism in the lateral skull base surgery using Caprini risk assessment model

To analyze and stratify the possible risk factors of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in lateral skull base surgery (LSBS) using the Caprini risk assessment model.

In a single center, a retrospective study was conducted with patients who underwent LSBS from June 2016 to August 2021. The clinical characteristics and blood chemistry tests were collected. The incidence of VTE within 30 days of surgery was recorded. The Caprini risk score was calculated to assess the postoperative VTE risk.

Among the 123 patients in this study, the VTE incidence within 30 postoperative days was 8.9%. The total Caprini risk score in VTE patients (5.6 ± 1.9 points) was significantly higher than that of non-VTE patients (4.6 ± 1.4 points; p = 0.028). The binary logistic regression showed the total Caprini score as the only independent indicator of postoperative VTE. The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the Caprini score at 6.5 points had low sensitivity (36.4%) but high specificity (91.1%), with the largest area under the curve being 0.659. The VTE rate was significantly higher in patients with a total Caprini score ≥ 7 points (28.6%) compared to those with a total Caprini score ≤ 6 points (7.3%; p = 0.022).

LSBS patients have a high risk of developing postoperative VTE. Patients with a Caprini score ≥ 7 points had a significantly higher risk of developing VTE after LSBS. The Caprini risk system was useful in assessing the VTE risk in LSBS. However, more data, calibration, and validation are necessary to establish an exclusive Caprini risk system for LSBS.