Aspirin prophylaxis of venous thromboembolic disease following fracture of the upper femur.

In a prospective study of 51 patients with fractures of the femoral neck, aspirin was used as a prophylactic measure against thromboembolic disease. Thrombi were detected by cuff impedence plethysmography, Doppler ultrasonography and ascending venography. Thrombi were identified in 20 (39.2%) of the patients. There was no significant difference between the frequency with which thrombi occurred in men and in women. Blood salicylate values were the same for patients who had and who did not have thrombi. There were no instances of pulmonary embolism. The frequency of deep vein thrombosis was comparable to that in a previous series of untreated patients from the same centre. It appears from this study that in these cases prophylaxis against venous thromboembolism using aspirin in a dosage of 600 mg bid is ineffective.