Baillière's clinical obstetrics and gynaecology
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Baillieres Clin Obstet Gynaecol · Sep 1997
Future research needs for venous thrombo-embolic disease in obstetrics and gynaecology.
The clinical management of thrombo-embolic disease in obstetrics and gynaecology is hampered by the paucity of firm evidence on which to base clinical decisions. This is particularly so in obstetrics where there have been no randomized controlled trials of thromboprophylaxis in pregnancy or the puerperium of sufficient size to detect differences in the incidence of clinical thrombo-embolic events. ⋯ The small randomized comparisons that have been performed suggest that relatively non-invasive procedures may be just as effective as heparin in preventing thrombo-embolism without the associated complications. Recent controversies concerning the effect of the OCP and HRT on the risk of thrombo-embolic disease indicate that the present methods we use to evaluate these interventions needs to be urgently addressed so that safety rather than efficacy becomes the principle outcome.