Hospitalized ulcerative colitis patients have an elevated risk of thromboembolic events.
OBJECTIVE
To compare thromboembolism rates between hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis and other hospitalized patients at high risk for thromboembolism. To compare thromboembolism rates between patients with ulcerative colitis undergoing a colorectal operation and other patients undergoing colorectal operations.


METHODS
Data from the National Hospital Discharge Survey was used to compare thromboembolism rates between (1) hospitalized patients with a discharge diagnosis of ulcerative colitis and those with diverticulitis or acute respiratory failure, and (2) hospitalized patients with a discharge diagnosis of ulcerative colitis who underwent colectomy and those with diverticulitis or colorectal cancer who underwent colorectal operations.


RESULTS
Patients diagnosed with ulcerative colitis had similar or higher rates of combined venous thromboembolism (2.03%) than their counterparts with diverticulitis (0.76%) or respiratory failure (1.99%), despite the overall greater prevalence of thromboembolic risk factors in the latter groups. Discharged patients with colitis that were treated surgically did not have significantly different rates of venous or arterial thromboembolism than those with surgery for diverticulitis or colorectal cancer.


CONCLUSIONS
Patients with ulcerative colitis who do not undergo an operation during their hospitalization have similar or higher rates of thromboembolism than other medical patients who are considered to be high risk for thromboembolism.
Wang
Jennifer Y
JY
Department of Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
Terdiman
Jonathan P
JP
Vittinghoff
Eric
E
Minichiello
Tracy
T
Varma
Madhulika G
MG
D000368:Aged; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000453:epidemiology; D003082:Colectomy; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D011336:Probability; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000453:epidemiology; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology; D016019:Survival Analysis; D017741:Survivors; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000453:epidemiology