Assessment of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis practice in medical-surgical adult ICU: A cross sectional study

Abstract

Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a condition in which blood clots develop in the deep veins, especially in the lower limb veins. Intensive care unit (ICU) patients have a greater risk of thrombotic events due to additional risk factors such as immobilization, mechanical ventilation, and central catheters. In medical-surgical critically ill patients, the occurrence of symptomatic or asymptomatic DVT without thromboprophylaxis is 13–31%. Objective: To assess the practice of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in medical-surgical adult ICU. Methods: All consecutive critically ill patients in ICU from January 10, 2021, to Jun 9, 2021, were included in the study. Data were collected using reviewing the patient chart and interviewing the responsible body in ICU including the residents and nurses. The same patient was not included twice within the same cycle, or in the second cycle, if he/she was still in the ICU at the time of the second cycle excluded by observing previous patient ID. The data was processed and analyzed by using SPSS version 20 and Microsoft Excel 2010. Result: A total of 90 surgical-medical ICU patients were observed. All of the patients in the sample were receiving some form of VTE prophylaxis (100%), but none of them (0%) had the risk stratification documented in the chart. Conclusion: and recommendations: It's critical to emphasize the importance of VTE risk stratification documentation in patients' charts. We recommend that the ICU staffs to follow a specific protocol for VTE risk stratification and prophylaxis dosing based on well-known guidelines and recommendations and that once that protocol is implemented, an awareness and education campaign be applied. Highlights