Background and objective: The prevalence of post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) in Spain is not known accurately at present. The main objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of PTS and the possible prognostic factors related to its development and impact on quality of life.
Patients and method: This was an observational, multicenter, cross-sectional and retrospective study of patients who had suffered a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) between March 2010 and March 2011. The Villalta scale was applied as a standardized assessment of PTS at the enrollment visit. According to the score, distribution was: patients with PTS (score>4) and patients without PTS (score ≤4). Subsequently, DVT data and risk factors were collected retrospectively. The quality of life of patients was evaluated.
Results: In total 511 patients with DVT were enrolled, of which 7 patients were excluded as they did not meet the inclusion/exclusion criteria. The prevalence of PTS was 53%, with 56.2% having a mild character, 20.6% moderate, and 23.2% severe. The presence of risk factors for DVT including immobilization, hormonal therapy and obesity was significantly higher in patients with PTS than in patients without PTS. There were not significant differences in the location of the DVT. The perception of patients about their health was significantly worse in patients with DVT.
Conclusions: The prevalence of PTS in patients with DVT is very high. The presence of risk factors for DVT clearly contributes to a greater predisposition to suffering PTS in an average time of 2 years.
Keywords: Calidad de vida; Deep vein thrombosis; Post-thrombotic syndrome; Prevalence; Prevalencia; Quality of life; Síndrome postrombótico; Trombosis venosa profunda.
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