[Has phlebography become useless in the diagnosis of deep venous thrombosis of the lower extremities?]. 1987

M Reggi

It is now widely accepted that the clinical diagnosis of deep venous thrombosis (D.V.T.) is unreliable. Many venous thrombi are nonobstructive and not associated with vessel wall inflammation or inflammation of the surrounding tissues and consequently have no detectable clinical manifestations. Moreover, none of the symptoms or signs of venous thrombosis are unique to this condition and all can be caused by non thrombotic disorders. On the other hand, in most of the D.V.T., the calf is the site in the legs where a thrombus starts. This thrombus begins commonly in valve pockets throughout various deep veins of the leg and in saccules of soleal veins. Several non invasive techniques have been developed for diagnosing D.V.T.: 125I, fibrinogen, impedance plethysmography, Doppler ultrasound, Duplex scanning. Many publications document the correlation between venography and these non invasive tests for D.V.T. Unfortunately it appears that, excepted 125I. Fg, these techniques are poorly reliable at the level of the calf. Moreover the diagnosis of D.V.T. may occur in particular and difficult situations such as a recurrent deep vein thrombosis. Considering all above the authors believes that contrast venography remains the standard and that it is less dangerous to do unnecessary venography than not to recognize a deep vein thrombosis.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007457 Iodine Radioisotopes Unstable isotopes of iodine that decay or disintegrate emitting radiation. I atoms with atomic weights 117-139, except I 127, are radioactive iodine isotopes. Radioisotopes, Iodine
D010690 Phlebography Radiographic visualization or recording of a vein after the injection of contrast medium. Venography,Phlebographies,Venographies
D010992 Plethysmography, Impedance Recording changes in electrical impedance between electrodes placed on opposite sides of a part of the body, as a measure of volume changes in the path of the current. (Stedman, 25th ed) Rheography,Impedance Plethysmography,Impedance Plethysmographies,Plethysmographies, Impedance,Rheographies
D012008 Recurrence The return of a sign, symptom, or disease after a remission. Recrudescence,Relapse,Recrudescences,Recurrences,Relapses
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D013924 Thrombophlebitis Inflammation of a vein associated with a blood clot (THROMBUS). Phlegmasia Alba Dolens,Dolens, Phlegmasia Alba,Thrombophlebitides
D014463 Ultrasonography The visualization of deep structures of the body by recording the reflections or echoes of ultrasonic pulses directed into the tissues. Use of ultrasound for imaging or diagnostic purposes employs frequencies ranging from 1.6 to 10 megahertz. Echography,Echotomography,Echotomography, Computer,Sonography, Medical,Tomography, Ultrasonic,Ultrasonic Diagnosis,Ultrasonic Imaging,Ultrasonographic Imaging,Computer Echotomography,Diagnosis, Ultrasonic,Diagnostic Ultrasound,Ultrasonic Tomography,Ultrasound Imaging,Diagnoses, Ultrasonic,Diagnostic Ultrasounds,Imaging, Ultrasonic,Imaging, Ultrasonographic,Imaging, Ultrasound,Imagings, Ultrasonographic,Imagings, Ultrasound,Medical Sonography,Ultrasonic Diagnoses,Ultrasonographic Imagings,Ultrasound, Diagnostic,Ultrasounds, Diagnostic
D014680 Veins The vessels carrying blood away from the CAPILLARY BEDS. Vein
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