Abstract
Twenty-one patients with acute traumatic spinal cord lesions who were admitted to our Spinal Unit during 1974 have been treated with Calcium Heparin, using a dosage of 5000-7500 i.u. at 12-hourly intervals from the first days after the lesion until the use of a wheelchair, as a prophylactic measure in order to prevent venous thromboembolism. Of these 21 patients 18 received this treatment continuously, with a resulting o per cent of venous thrombosis and o per cent of pulmonary embolisms. In the three remaining cases, treatment had to be temporarily interrupted and in one case clinical thrombo-phlebitis was clearly evident. No case of pulmonary embolism was registered. We consider this technique to be very useful in the prophylaxis of thrombo-embolic complications in this type of patient. The use of this type of prophylactic therapy, results and conclusions are discussed.
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Casas, E., Sánchez, M., Arias, C. et al. Prophylaxis of venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients with acute traumatic spinal cord lesions. Spinal Cord 14, 178–183 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.1976.31
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.1976.31