Venous Thrombosis and Embolism

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), which includes deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism, is the third most common cause of vascular death after myocardial infarction and stroke. In patients with suspected VTE, the diagnosis can be readily established with noninvasive testing: compression ultrasonography for the diagnosis of DVT and computed tomographic pulmonary angiography for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. Many patients with VTE …