Venous Thromboembolism: A Public Health Concern

Venous thromboembolism (VTE), defined as deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or both, affects an estimated 300,000–600,000 individuals in the U.S. each year, causing considerable morbidity and mortality. It is a disorder that can occur in all races and ethnicities, all age groups, and both genders. With many of the known risk factors—advanced age, immobility, surgery, obesity—increasing in society, VTE is an important and growing public health problem.Recently, a marked increase has occurred in federal and national efforts to raise awareness and acknowledge the need for VTE prevention. Yet, many basic public health functions—surveillance, research, and awareness—are still needed. Learning and understanding more about the burden and causes of VTE, and raising awareness among the public and healthcare providers through a comprehensive public health approach, has enormous potential to prevent and reduce death and morbidity from deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism throughout the U.S.