Introduction:

Venous thromboembolic disease is a serious and fatal process considered a health problem on a global scale.

Objective:

Characterize morbidity and mortality due to venous thromboembolic disease at "Arnaldo Milián Castro" University Hospital.

Methods:

A retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 290 cases treated at “Arnaldo Milián Castro” University Hospital in Villa Clara between February 2014 and February 2016. The variables were: age, sex, risk factors, form of presentation of the disease and type of diagnosis.

Results:

A predominance of the female sex and patients over 70 years of age was observed, regardless of sex and immobility as risk factors. Deep vein thrombosis of the ileus-femoral sector was the most common form of presentation. Clinical diagnosis prevailed, although pulmonary thromboembolism, as the main complication, was diagnosed by necropsy. The highest amount of deep vein thrombosis was recorded in the Angiology Service, while deaths from pulmonary embolism predominated in the Intensive Care Service. The most commonly used medical treatment was sodium heparin plus warfarin; prophylaxis was performed only in 24.7% of cases. Sodium heparin was more used in Intensive Care services.

Conclusions:

Venous thromboembolic disease was the leading cause of preventable death in the hospital, suggesting that antithrombotic prophylaxis should be an essential practice in hospitalized patients.

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