A life-threatening blood clot in the lungs called a pulmonary embolism is one of the most severe complications of brain surgery.
But a Loyola University Health System study published in the
Journal of Neurosurgery suggests that screening methods hospitals typically use to access the risk of pulmonary embolisms may fall short.
Hospitals typically screen for blood clots in legs, which can break free, travel to the lungs and cause pulmonary embolisms. But in the Loyola study, only seven of the 22 patients who experienced pulmonary embolisms showed evidence of leg blood clots, while nine embolism patients tested negative for leg clots. A blood clot in the vein is known as a deep venous thrombosis (DVT).
"We could not demonstrate a good correlation between lower extremity DVT and pulmonary embolism in our patient population," senior author Thomas Origitano, MD, PhD and colleagues wrote. Origitano is chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine.
One of the major risks of severe complications and deaths in brain surgery patients is venous thromboembolism, which includes DVT and pulmonary embolism. Risk factors for DVTs include tumors, spinal cord injuries, head trauma, strokes, length of surgery and decreased mobility or limb movement.
The study findings suggest there may be a subset of high-risk patients who already are prone to blood clots when they are admitted to the hospital. Or perhaps pulmonary embolisms are triggered by blood clots that break free from arms rather than from legs. Blood clots in arms can be caused by patients' immobility or the use of central lines (catheters in large veins), researchers wrote.