Study finds recent or current COVID-19 infection linked to increased risk of dangerous blood clots during surgery

Deep vein thrombosis of the right leg.
(Image by Wikipedia (commons.wikimedia.org), Author: James Heilman, MD)   Details   Source   DMCA

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a condition in which dangerous blood clots form in the veins and has been described as the number one preventable cause of death in hospitalised patients.

New research published in Anaesthesia (a journal of the Association of Anaesthetists) shows that VTEs, a known complication of surgery, are 50% more likely to occur in patients with current COVID-19 infection and almost twice as likely in those with recent infection. The study also found having a VTE was associated with 5-times increased risk of death within 30 days following surgery compared with patients with no VTE.