[The clinical problem of false phlebitis]

This is a study of some of the problems presented by "false phlebitis". This problem arises when patients are wrongly considered as post-phlebitis when the venous system is intact. There is also the problem of false diagnoses of venous thrombosis leading to anticoagulant treatment which is not indicated or to surgical measures, equally unjustified for the prevention of possible pulmonary embolism. Finally there is the problem of venous compression simulating thrombosis where the diagnosis of thrombosis leads to delay in the institution of specific treatment. The current means of diagnosis, phlebography and functional investigations, should permit a significant reduction in the number of these errors of diagnosis which may be of great disadvantage to the patients.