A fixed dose approach to thrombosis chemoprophylaxis may be inadequate in heavier critically ill patients.
Journal:
Critical care and resuscitation : journal of the Australasian Academy of Critical Care Medicine
Published Date:
Oct 18, 2023
Abstract
Overweight patients are at greater risk of venous thromboembolism. We aimed to describe prescribing patterns of thrombosis chemoprophylaxis in critically ill patients weighing ≥ 100 kg and quantify the effectiveness of these regimens using the surrogate biomarker of plasma anti-Xa level. A prospective single-centre cohort study was conducted over a 6-month period. Patients weighing ≥ 100 kg who were prescribed enoxaparin for chemoprophylaxis and expected to remain in the intensive care unit for > 48 hours were eligible. Anti-Xa levels were measured once a patient had received at least three consecutive doses of enoxaparin. Peak levels were measured 4-6 hours after the third dose and trough levels were measured before the fourth dose. Anti-Xa levels were compared with established target ranges for peak and trough anti-Xa levels (0.2-0.5 IU/mL and > 0.1 IU/mL, respectively). Eighty-eight patients met the eligibility criteria, and anti-Xa levels for 42 patients were obtained. Fixed dose chemoprophylaxis approaches varied considerably, with 40 mg once daily (54/88 [61%]) and 40 mg twice daily (20/88 [23%]) being the most frequently prescribed regimens. No patient had a peak anti-Xa level > 0.5 IU/mL. When comparing 40 mg once daily versus twice daily, the once daily regimen had lower median trough levels (0.01 IU/mL [interquartile range (IQR), 0.00-0.04] 0.09 IU/mL [IQR, 0.05-0.13]; < 0.001) and greater proportions of patients with levels below the established range (< 0.1 IU/mL) (15/16 [95%] 7/14 [50%]; = 0.002) and levels that were undetectable (0.00 IU/mL) (8/16 [50%] 1/14 [7%]; = 0.01). At a single centre, thrombosis chemoprophylaxis prescribing patterns for heavier critically ill patients varied considerably. Current fixed dose approaches may be inadequate in this cohort.
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