Objective: This paper investigated the risk of preoperative and postoperative deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in surgical patients. Methods:The sample consisted of 377 patients of the general surgery, orthopedics and traumatology, neurosurgery, and cardiovascular surgery clinics of a university hospital. Data were collected using a demographic characteristics questionnaire, the Deep Vein Thrombosis Diagnostic Criteria Form, the Autar Deep Vein Thrombosis Risk Assessment Scale, the Caprini Risk Assessment Model, and the Padua Prediction Score. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis.Results: According to the Autar Deep Vein Thrombosis Risk Assessment Scale, most participants were in the "low risk" category in the preoperative period (91%), and more than a quarter of the participants were in the "high risk" category in the postoperative period (30%). According to the Caprini Risk Assessment Model, less than half of the participants were in the "moderate risk" group in the preoperative period (39%), and more than half the participants were in the "high risk" group in the postoperative period (70.6%). According to the Padua Prediction Score, most participants were in the "low risk" category in the preoperative period (82.2%), and more than half the participants were in the "high risk" group in the postoperative period (52.8%). More than half the participants who used graduated compression stocks in the preoperative period misused them (62.7%). A bit more than half the participants who used graduated compression stocks in the postoperative period used them correctly. Conclusion:The results show that surgical patients are at a higher risk for deep vein thrombosis in the postoperative period than in the preoperative period.