The Effect of Heparin Therapy in Obese Patients with Venous Thromboembolism

Heparin is a weight-based anticoagulant medication used in patients experiencing venous thromboembolism (VTE). Obesity is a direct risk factor for the development of VTE. Unfortunately, obesity continues to rise at an all time rate within the United States. The use of heparin among obese patients with VTE is only predicted to increase over time. It has also been proven that therapeutic anticoagulation is needed to be achieved within the first 24 hours of the initial heparin dose to limit the risk of VTE recurrence in the patient. However, there is controversy between heparin pharmacokinetics in the obese patient and dosing methods. The review analyzes the data of 1 cross-sectional consecutive case series, 1 case report/literature review, and 5 retrospective cohort studies. The results of the collected data from the resources determined the importance of the provider following the recommended protocol dosages, utilizing a pharmacist in the calculation process, the problem of administering heparin boluses, and the effectiveness of actual body weight and dosing body weight heparin dosages in the obese population with VTE.