Venous Thromboemboli and Exacerbations of COPD

The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of and risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE) in exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD patients hospitalised with an exacerbation were included consecutively. Symptoms, signs and clinical, haematological and epidemiological parameters on admission were noted. All patients underwent computed tomographic angiography and ultrasonographic examination for deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism (PE). Wells and Geneva scores were calculated. Patients were followed-up for 1 yr in order to determine mortality. Deep vein thrombosis and PE were detected in 14 and 18 patients, respectively. The prevalence of VTE was three times higher in patients with an exacerbation of unknown origin than in patients with an exacerbation of known origin (p = 0.016). Of patients with VTE, 20 (95%) had high D-dimer levels. The negative predictive value of D-dimer testing was 0.98. Although the moderate- and high-risk categories of both the Wells and Geneva methods covered all PE patients, the Wells method identified 49% less potential patients for PE investigation. Mortality at 1 yr was higher (61.9% versus 31.8%) in VTE patients (p = 0.013). VTE is a common problem in COPD patients hospitalised with an exacerbation, leading to high long-term mortality. D-dimer levels and the Wells criteria can be used to determine whether or not these patients are assessed for a thromboembolic event.