Journal of plastic, reconstructive & aesthetic surgery : JPRAS
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J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg · Mar 2017
Prevention of thrombosis in hypercoagulable patients undergoing microsurgery: A novel anticoagulation protocol.
Hypercoagulable conditions are often considered relative contraindications to free flap reconstruction. This paper presents and critically examines a novel anticoagulation regimen developed to address this disease state. ⋯ The key approach to hypercoagulable patients is likely prevention over treatment. Patients who received prophylactic heparin infusions had clinically lower rates of thrombotic events and flap loss. However, this encouraging finding must be balanced with the increased risk for postoperative bleeding complications.