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Alexander S. Gallus, MB, BS; Jack Hirsh, MD; Stephen E. O'Brien, MD; John A. McBride, MB, ChB; Robert J. Tuttle, MD; Michael Gent, MSc

JAMA. 1976;235(18):1980-1982.

Abstract
The effect of low-dose heparin prophylaxis on venous thrombosis and bleeding after major elective surgery was studied in a prospective controlled study of 820 patients. The total incidence of venous thrombosis detected with leg-scanning using fibrinogen labeled with radioactive iodine (¹²⁵I) was reduced from 16.0% in the control group to 4.2% in treated patients. More important, the incidence of popliteal or femoral vein thrombosis was reduced from 2.9% to 1.0%. Prophylaxis resulted in a slight increase in bleeding—minor wound hematoma, mean volume of blood transfused, and a postoperative hematocrit fall in treated patients. However, increased bleeding was clinically minor, and prophylaxis was well tolerated.

(JAMA 235:1980-1982, 1976)

Author Affiliations
From the departments of hematology (Dr Gallus), surgery (Dr O'Brien), and radiology (Dr Tuttle), St Joseph's Hospital; the departments of pathology (Drs Gallus, Hirsh, and McBride), medicine (Drs Gallus and Hirsh), clinical epidemiology and biostatistics (Mr Gent), McMaster University; and the Department of Hematology, Henderson General Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario.

Footnotes
Reprints not available.

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