Safety and Efficacy of Extended Duration of Thromboembolic Prophylaxis Following Radical Cystectomy: An Initial Institutional Experience

Introduction We evaluated the safety and efficacy of extended duration of pharmacological prophylaxis for preventing symptomatic venous thromboembolism following radical cystectomy. Methods We recorded symptomatic venous thromboembolism and lymphocele events within 30 days of radical cystectomy among patients treated with extended duration of pharmacological prophylaxis (enoxaparin 40 mg subcutaneously daily for 30 days). We compared these outcomes to those in the cohort of patients who underwent radical cystectomy at our institution in the year prior to extended prophylaxis implementation. Unadjusted descriptive statistics and univariate analyses were performed using the Pearson test or the Fisher chi-square test for categorical variables and the Wilcoxon rank sum test for continuous variables. Results We analyzed the records of 52 patients who did and 82 who did not receive extended duration of pharmacological prophylaxis after radical cystectomy. Only 1 patient (1.9%) discharged home on extended prophylaxis was diagnosed with venous thromboembolism within 30 days of RC compared to 5 (6.1%) who had not received extended prophylaxis. In 3 patients symptomatic lymphocele developed within 30 days of radical cystectomy, including 1 (1.9%) who had received extended prophylaxis and 2 (2.4%) who had not. No patient in either cohort was rehospitalized for bleeding complications. Conclusions Our initial experience suggests that extended duration of pharmacological prophylaxis is associated with a lower rate of venous thromboembolism following radical cystectomy and it does not increase the risk of bleeding or symptomatic lymphocele. These data warrant validation in larger patient cohorts, ideally in the prospective clinical trial setting.