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. 2015 Apr 20;7(1):e2015029.
doi: 10.4084/MJHID.2015.029. eCollection 2015.

Is the incidence trend of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia decreased by the increased use of low-molecular-weight-heparin?

Fahad A S Al-Eidan  1
Affiliations

Is the incidence trend of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia decreased by the increased use of low-molecular-weight-heparin?

Fahad A S Al-Eidan. Mediterr J Hematol Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: The increasing trend of using low-molecular-weight-heparin (LMWH) versus unfractionated heparin (UFH) in hospitalized adult patients is raising concerns about the incidence of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT).

Method: A retrospective study analyzed the requests for heparin-induced antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) among adult hospitalized patients during the period from January 2011 to December 2013. These patients received either UFH or LMWH for prevention or therapeutic indications. Those with positive immune-mediated HIT were identified and considered as case patients.

Result: The usage of LMWH and UFH and development of HIT was determined during the study period. The incidence of HIT in patients receiving UFH and those receiving LMWH was 4.09 per thousand patients and 0.48 per thousand patients, respectively, (p<0.0001) with an overall incidence of 2.49 per thousand patients.

Conclusion: The increased trend of using LMWH over UFH among hospitalized adult patients was observed and can be said to contribute to the diminished overall incidence of HIT.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Trends in the incidence rates of HIT per 1000 patients from 2011 to 2013 and the total over a three-year study period incidence rate. Each bar represents incidence rate and confidence intervals.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Graph ‘A’ shows a correlation between the annual number of patients receiving low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) and annual number of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) assays performed. ‘B’ shows the correlation between annual number of patients receiving unfractionated heparin (UFH) and annual numbers of HIT assays.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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