Re: Does aspirin have a role in venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in total knee arthroplasty patients?

Comparison of postoperative complications after total hip arthroplasty among patients receiving aspirin, enoxaparin, warfarin, and factor Xa inhibitors

Optimal prophylaxis for prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) after total joint arthroplasty (TJA) remains debated. The purpose of this study was to compare postoperative complications in patients receiving different VTE chemoprophylactic regimens. Using a nationwide healthcare database, 72,670 THA patients without a history of VTE were identified. Study cohorts received VTE prophylaxis within 30 days postoperatively. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were used to assess 30-day and 90-day postoperative complications (hematoma, hemorrhage, transfusion, pulmonary embolism (PE), VTE, prosthetic joint infection (PJI), and incision/drainage (I&D)). Of the 72,670 THA patients, 25,966 received single medication VTE prophylaxis; 551 (2.12%) aspirin, 6791 (26.15%) enoxaparin, 12,008 (46.25%) warfarin, 5403 (20.81%) rivaroxaban, 876 (3.37%) fondaparinux and 337 (1.30%) apixaban. 30-day complications included; aspirin: I&D; warfarin: I&D, hematoma, hemorrhage, transfusion, PJI, PE and DVT; apixaban: hematoma and hemorrhage. 90-day complications included; aspirin: I&D; warfarin: I&D, hematoma, hemorrhage, transfusion, PJI, PE and DVT. Warfarin was the only anticoagulant associated with a higher risk for DVT, and the highest risk for 30-day and 90-day complications. Aspirin had the highest risk for I&D. Despite three times increased 30-day risk for bleeding, apixaban was effective in preventing VTE during the high-risk 3-month-period. Enoxaparin had the lowest risk for PE and DVT while rivaroxaban had the lowest risk for PJI, hematoma, I&D, hemorrhage and transfusion.

Aspirin: an alternative for pulmonary embolism prophylaxis after arthroplasty?

BACKGROUND

The most effective agent for prophylaxis against venous thromboembolic disease after total joint arthroplasty (TJA) remains unknown. The paucity of literature comparing different methods of pulmonary embolism (PE) prophylaxis and fear of litigation make it difficult for surgeons to abandon the use of aggressive chemical prophylaxis.

QUESTIONS/PURPOSES

We compared the (1) overall frequency of symptomatic PE, (2) risk of symptomatic PE after propensity matching that adjusted for potentially confounding variables, and (3) other complications and length of stay before and after propensity matching in patients undergoing TJA at our institution who received either aspirin or warfarin prophylaxis.

METHODS

A total of 28,923 patients underwent TJA between January 2000 and June 2012 at our institution, had either aspirin (325 mg twice daily; 2800 patients) or warfarin prophylaxis (26,123 patients), and were registered in our institutional electronic database. The incidence of symptomatic PE, symptomatic deep vein thrombosis (DVT), hematoma formation, infection, wound complications, and mortality up to 90 days postoperatively was collected from the database. We performed multivariate analysis and 3:1 and 5:1 propensity score matching for comorbid and demographic variables.

RESULTS

The overall symptomatic PE rate was lower (p < 0.001) in patients receiving aspirin (0.14%) than in the patients receiving warfarin (1.07%). This difference did not change after matching. The aspirin group also had significantly fewer symptomatic DVTs and wound-related problems and shorter hospital stays, which did not change after matching.

CONCLUSIONS

After publication of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons' guidelines, some surgeons have utilized aspirin as thromboprophylaxis after TJA. Based on our findings from a large institutional database, aspirin offers suitable prophylaxis against symptomatic PE in selected patients.