Does Seven Days of Postoperative Enoxaparin Increase Bleeding Risk in Abdominal Contouring Surgery? A Single-center Experience

Background:. Venous thromboembolism (VTE) poses a major risk after abdominal contouring surgery, impacting morbidity and mortality. Despite various preventative strategies, surgeons are cautious about using enoxaparin for extended postoperative periods. This study aims to determine if a 7-day postop...

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Main Authors: Abdallah Abushehab, MD, Mehmet Furkan Tunaboylu, MD, Doga Kuruoglu, MD, Alexandre Meira Pazelli, MD, Sara M. Hussein, MD, Basel A. Sharaf, MD, DDS, FACS
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer 2024-12-01
Series:Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Global Open
Online Access:http://journals.lww.com/prsgo/fulltext/10.1097/GOX.0000000000006407
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Summary:Background:. Venous thromboembolism (VTE) poses a major risk after abdominal contouring surgery, impacting morbidity and mortality. Despite various preventative strategies, surgeons are cautious about using enoxaparin for extended postoperative periods. This study aims to determine if a 7-day postoperative course of enoxaparin increases bleeding risks compared with a single dose of intraoperative unfractionated heparin in patients undergoing abdominal contouring surgery. Methods:. A retrospective cohort analysis was performed on patients who underwent abdominoplasty or panniculectomy from August 2017 to October 2023. Patients were split into 2 groups: Group 1 received 5000 units of intraoperative unfractionated heparin in addition to 7 days of postoperative enoxaparin (40 mg daily); group 2 received only the intraoperative heparin dose. Primary outcomes included bleeding events and VTE incidence. Secondary outcomes were seroma, infection, surgical site dehiscence, necrosis, drain duration, and reoperation rates. Results:. The study included 121 patients (111 women, 10 men), with 61 patients in group 1 and 60 in group 2. The average age was 49 ± 12 years, and the average body mass index was 29.8 ± 5 kg/m². No cases of VTE were reported. Postoperative bleeding occurred in 3 patients (4.9%) in group I and 2 patients (3.3%) in group 2, showing no statistically significant difference (P = 0.66). Secondary outcomes also showed no significant differences between the groups. Conclusions:. Our study of 121 patients undergoing either abdominoplasty or panniculectomy demonstrated that administering enoxaparin for 7 days postoperatively is safe and does not increase the risk of bleeding.
ISSN:2169-7574