Back to Journals » Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management » Volume 5

Life-threatening hemorrhage following subcutaneous heparin therapy

Authors Hudcova J, Talmor D

Published 2 December 2008 Volume 2009:5 Pages 51—54

DOI https://doi.org/10.2147/TCRM.S4398

Review by Single anonymous peer review

Peer reviewer comments 4



Jana Hudcova, Daniel Talmor

Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

Abstract: Prophylactic administration of unfractionated heparin is a common practice in a perioperative period. Heparin monitoring with subcutaneous dosing is not recommended; however it becomes important in selected patients. We report a case of massive hemorrhage with subcutaneous heparin administration in an HIV-positive male patient with cachexia and mild liver dysfunction. Prolonged activated plasma thromboplastin time and thrombin time, but normal reptilase time well as response to protamine sulfate point towards the heparin effect. Inhibitor screen was negative and factor VIII activity was normal. All these rule out the possibility of acquired factor VIII inhibitor or any other inhibitor and confirm that this bleeding was due to heparin overdose. We believe that delayed clearance of UH secondary to possible involvement of reticuloendothelial system might have been be responsible for heparin overdose even though inadvertent administration of large dose of heparin intravenously can not be completely ruled out. Administration of unfractionated heparin to a patient with cachexia and abnormal liver function warrants close attention to heparin monitoring or switch to low molecular weight heparin since its mechanism of elimination differs.

Keywords: unfractionated heparin, bleeding, prophylaxis, liver dysfunction, cachexia, HIV

Creative Commons License © 2008 The Author(s). This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution - Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License. By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms.