12/07/2021
BBH article – Addressing the DVT burden on maternity wards
Dr Mona Fawzy, a consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology, and labour ward lead at Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, talks through the burden of pregnancy-related Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) – a leading cause of maternal death – and the study of an innovative new medical technology for high-risk maternity patients unable to be prescribed the standard care.
Childbirth in the UK is the safest it has ever been, but it can bring with it more than morning sickness and fatigue.
EnlargeIt can also bring the risk of pregnancy‐related venous thromboembolism (VTE), a preventable medical condition that occurs when a blood clot that can form in the deep veins breaks off and travels through the bloodstream to the heart or lungs, causing a blockage called a pulmonary embolism (PE) – a life-threatening complication and the leading cause of maternal death in the in the UK.
While the absolute risk remains relatively low, pregnancy-related VTE effects two in every 1,000 patients, and is five times more common in pregnant women compared to non-pregnant women of a same age – increasing 20-fold in the 12 weeks after delivery, before dropping back to normal.
Read the article
