[Superficial venous thromboses of the legs]

The study concerned 106 superficial venous thrombosis (SVT) diagnosed thanks to an echo-Doppler, between october 1989 and february 1993 in 42 men and 63 women aged 59 +/- 18 years and 64 +/- 18 years respectively. In nearly half cases, clinical sign was a suspicion of a deep venous thrombosis (DVT) (34 cases) or a pulmonary embolism (PE) (14 cases). A supposed precipitating factor was found in 65 cases out of 105: a cancer already known in 11 cases. The SVT was located in the left lower limb in 56 cases, in the right lower limb in 41 cases and a bilateral one in 9 cases. The long saphenous vein was affected in 60 cases, the short saphenous vein in 22 cases, both saphenous veins in 6 cases and a non-collateral saphenous vein in 17 cases. In 38 cases, a DVT added to a SVT, either separately in 19 cases, 9 of which in controlateral or by proximity extension from an arch in 7 cases or from a more distal perforating vein in 8 cases. In total, complications, either DVT or SVT, appeared in 46 cases out of 105. The age of > or = 60 has been associated with the presence of complications. In 3 cases, a cancer was discovered in the month following the SVT. These results question the benignancy of SVT. They match those of two series of SVT diagnosed thanks to echo-Doppler and recently reported. They urge to explore systematically both venous networks, superficial and deep and to achieve an etiologic balance either for SVT or unexplained DVT.