Abstract
The evaluation criteria for dosage of low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) for pregnant women at high risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) remain unclear. A retrospective study was performed to investigate the relative appropriate LMWH administration strategy and dosage for pregnant women at risk of VTE. 219 pregnant women with perinatal and postpartum VTE were reviewed and divided into group A (fixed dose group: n=73, 5000 IU dalteparin daily for all women), group B (weight group: n=73, 2500 IU dalteparin daily for women less than 50 kg; 5000 IU dalteparin daily for women more than 50 kg), and group C (anti-factor Xa (FXa) + weight group: n=73, 5000 IU once daily for women less than 50 kg; 7500 IU once daily for women weighing 50–80 kg; 10,000 IU once daily for women weighing over 80 kg). Further dose administration was adjusted according to peak anti-FXa level, maintaining the peak at the 0.5–1.0 IU/mL range. Women in group C presented lower incidence of VTE and other pregnancy complications than group A and group B. Adjusting the dosage of LMWH according to both weight and anti-FXa level of pregnant women not only prevented VTE but also reduced the risk of postpartum hemorrhage induced by LMWH administration. In addition, adjusting the dose of LMWH according to anti-FXa level and body weight also affected the recurrence of VTE and the occurrence of postpartum hemorrhage in pregnant women.
Footnotes
Contributors SX: literature search, study design, data collection, data analysis and data interpretation. YL and LG: study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation and figures. JZ: study design, data collection, data interpretation and figures. LM: study design and data collection. ZY: study design, data analysis and data interpretation, guarantor. All authors contributed to drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests None declared.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.
Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.
Data availability statement
Data are available upon reasonable request.
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