Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common clinical problem that is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical practices in VTE prophylaxis in university and peripheral hospitals in Morocco. This is a national, cross-sectional, multicenter, observational study assessing the management of the VTE risk in selected Moroccan hospitals (four university and three peripheral). The thromboembolic risk of the selected patients was assessed according to the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) guidelines (2008). We hypothesized that interventions for VTE guideline implementation in those hospitals may improve prophylaxis use for hospitalized patients. A total of 1318 patients were analyzed: 467 (35.5%) medical and 851 (64.5%) surgical. The mean age of patients was 52.6 ± 16.5 years, and 52.7% were female. A total of 51.1% patients were considered to be at risk of VTE according to ACCP guidelines and were eligible for thromboprophylaxis (TP). Medical patients were more likely to present risk factors than surgical patients (53.6 vs. 50.7%, respectively). TP was prescribed for 53.1% of these patients, 57.4% in at-risk surgical patients and 50.3% in at-risk medical patients. TP was also prescribed for 42.9% of non-at-risk patients. The concordance between the recommended and the prescribed prophylaxis was poor for the total population (kappa = 0.110). TP did not improve sufficiently in our hospitals, even after implementation of the guidelines. New strategies are required to appropriately address TP in hospitalized patients.
Background
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis is a systemic inflammatory disease characterized by necrotizing vasculitis that affects small- and medium-sized blood vessels. Granulomatous inflammation affects the lungs, ears, nose, and throat, and commonly affects the kidneys, although the retroperitoneal tissue is rarely affected. Several studies have reported an increased risk of venous thromboembolism. Early diagnosis and treatment are of vital importance due to the rapid progression of the disease.
Case presentation
We present the case of a 66-year-old Moroccan man followed for bilateral jugular thrombosis. Cavitary pulmonary nodules and retroperitoneal fibrosis with thrombosis involving several vascular territories were detected on thoracoabdominopelvic computerized tomography scan. Laboratory analyses revealed that the patient was positive for cytoplasmic antineutrophilic antibodies. The diagnosis of granulomatosis with polyangiitis was retained. Treatment with glucocorticoids and immunosuppressive agents resulted in significant clinical and radiological improvement over the following months.
Conclusions
We describe the diagnostic steps and the difficulty of managing this patient. Rare manifestations, such as retroperitoneal fibrosis, have been reported in the literature in association with granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and should not delay the diagnosis and treatment of granulomatosis with polyangiitis owing to its severity.
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