Venous thromboembolism risk following surgery during the COVID ‐19 pandemic

Jackson, A; Humes, DJ; Mehrkar, A; Bacon, SCJ; Davy, S; Goldacre, B; West, J; Crooks, CJ

COVID-19 Collection

Journal article

Venous thromboembolism risk following surgery during the COVID ‐19 pandemic

Abstract:: Plain Language Summary: People who get COVID‐19 (caused by the SARS‐CoV‐2 virus) are more likely to develop blood clots in their veins. These clots are called venous thromboembolism (VTE). Doctors wanted to know how this risk changed during the COVID‐19 pandemic and after people started getting vaccinated. The goal of this study was to find out how often people had blood clots within 90 days after surgery during the pandemic. The researchers looked back at medical records of people who had certain types of surgery, such as abdominal, obstetric, bone (orthopaedic), heart, chest, or blood vessel operations. They used a large database called OpenSAFELY‐TPP. They counted how many people had blood clots within 90 days of surgery and compared different groups of patients, including those who had COVID‐19 and those who did not. The study included about 1.8 million surgeries, and 15,390 people had a blood clot within 90 days. The highest risk of clots happened during the Alpha wave of COVID‐19, when about 1 in 100 patients (1.2%) developed a clot. People who caught COVID‐19 after surgery were about 4 times more likely to get a blood clot than those who didn't. People who had recent COVID‐19 (before surgery) were also at higher risk. Those who were not vaccinated had the highest risk of clots. Having one vaccine dose lowered the risk by about 20%. Getting COVID‐19, either before or after surgery, made blood clots more likely within 90 days. However, getting at least one dose of the vaccine helped reduce that risk.

Publication status:: Published

Peer review status:: Peer reviewed

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APA Style

Jackson, A., Humes, D. J., Mehrkar, A., Bacon, S. C. J., Davy, S., Goldacre, B., West, J., & Crooks, C. J. (2025). Venous thromboembolism risk following surgery during the COVID ‐19 pandemic. Anaesthesia: Peri-Operative Medicine, Critical Care and Pain.

MLA Style

Jackson, A, et al. “Venous Thromboembolism Risk Following Surgery during the COVID ‐19 Pandemic.” Anaesthesia: Peri-Operative Medicine, Critical Care and Pain, 2025.

Chicago Style

Jackson, A, DJ Humes, A Mehrkar, et al. 2025. “Venous Thromboembolism Risk Following Surgery during the COVID ‐19 Pandemic.” Anaesthesia: Peri-Operative Medicine, Critical Care and Pain.
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