Long haul flights double the risk of thrombosis related to air travel

doi:10.1136/bmj.39258.479063.DB

BMJ 2007;334:1343 (30 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.39258.479063.DB

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Long haul flights double the risk of thrombosis related to air travel

John Zarocostas

Geneva

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Epidemiological studies show that the risk of venous thromboembolismdoubles after long haul air travel of more than four hours'duration, a World Health Organization report says.

The final report of phase I of the WHO research into globalhazards of travel (WRIGHT) project concludes that the absoluterisk of venous thromboembolism among healthy individuals fora flight of more than four hours was 1 in 6000. Pathophysiologicalstudies, it says, support these findings.

The studies were carried out by an international collaborationof researchers from the universities of Leiden (Netherlands),Leicester, Newcastle, Aberdeen, and Lausanne (Switzerland).

The studies indicate that the risk of venous thromboembolism"increases with the duration of the travel and with multipleflights within a short period," says the report.

Furthermore, the risk of venous thromboembolism increases significantlyin the presence of other known risk factors for venous thromboembolism,such as obesity, extremes of height, use . . . [Full text of this article]

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