title: Environmental and Genetic Risk Factors Associated with Venous Thromboembolism.
abstract: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) includes deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, and a combination of environmental and genetic risk factors contributes to VTE risk. Within environmental risk factors, some are provoking (e.g., cancer, surgery, trauma or fracture, immobilization, pregnancy and the postpartum period, long-distance travel, hospitalization, catheterization, and acute infection) and others are nonprovoking (e.g., age, sex, race/ethnicity, body mass index and obesity, oral contraceptive or hormone therapy use, corticosteroid use, statin use, diet, physical activity, sedentary time, and air pollution). Additionally, VTE has a strong genetic basis, with approximately 50 to 60% of the variance in VTE incidence attributed to genetic effects. Some genetic susceptibility variants that contribute to risk have been identified in candidate genes, mostly related to the clotting system and responsible for inherited hypercoagulable states (e.g., factor V Leiden, prothrombin, fibrinogen gamma, or blood group non-O). Other susceptibility single-nucleotide polymorphisms have been identified from genome-wide association studies, such as the two new loci inTSPAN15(rs78707713) andSCL44A2(rs2288904) genes. Risk factors are not always associated with VTE in isolation; however, and an understanding of how environmental and genetic factors interact may provide insight into the pathophysiology of VTE, possibly identifying opportunities for targeted prevention and treatment.
authors.affiliation: Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Crous-Bou
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Laura B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Harrington
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Center for Vascular Emergencies, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kabrhel
mesh_terms: D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D054556:Venous Thromboembolism / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics*