It seems that anytime a lower extremity undergoes operative treatment, the question is raised regarding the need for and type of thromboprophylaxis. However, controversy exists regarding the use of prophylaxis against venous thromboembolic disease (VTED) after foot and ankle surgery, largely because there are insufficient data from large-scale randomized trials to help guide foot and ankle surgeons in their decision-making processes. Currently, foot and ankle surgeons are forced to make decisions on the basis of incomplete information and contradictory guidelines. Moreover, there is inaccuracy in extrapolating findings from hip and knee arthroplasty studies to the foot and ankle population.
In the December 2015 issue of JBJS Reviews,Guss and DiGiovanni review VTED in the setting of foot and ankle surgery and recognize that certain patient populations may be at higher risk, including patients over the age of forty years with acute Achilles tendon ruptures, patients over the age of fifty years with ankle fractures, patients with diabetes mellitus, patients with connective-tissue inflammatory diseases, and patients with a history of VTED.
