title: 'No DVT found' is not a diagnosis: look beyond the D-dimer.
abstract: Current clinical practice is often heavily biased towards the exclusion of potentially serious, treatable diagnoses, such as deep venous thrombosis, rather than the positive diagnosis of the patient's underlying illness which precipitates seeking medical attention. We report a case of leg swelling where deep venous thrombosis was repeatedly excluded as a cause of leg pain and swelling, but where arrival at the correct diagnosis was significantly delayed, in part due to protocol-driven practice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Roodlands General Hospital, Haddington, East Lothian, UK. andrew.x.jamieson@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jamieson
mesh_terms: D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010001:Osteitis Deformans / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*
chemical_list: D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products; C036309:fibrin fragment D