Comparative double-blind study of two dosage regimens of low-molecular weight heparin in elderly patients with a fracture of the neck of the femur.

A randomized double-blind study comparing the efficacy and safety of two different dosage regimens of a low-MW heparin, Enoxaparin (Lovenox) 20 mg twice (group A) or 40 mg once (group B), was carried out in 103 elderly patients with a fracture of the neck of the femur. Distal and proximal thrombosis occurred in 18.3% of patients in group A and in 10.4% in group B. No major hemorrhagic complication was observed, except for two hematomas in each group. This trial suggests that a total daily dose of 40 mg of Enoxaparin can be effective in the prevention of deep vein thrombosis in elderly surgically treated patients and does not involve a major risk of bleeding.

[Comparative study of 2 dosages of low molecular weight heparin, PK 10169, in the prevention of thromboembolic incidents during treatment of 103 femur neck fractures]. / Etude comparative de deux posologies d'héparine de faible masse moléculaire PK 10,169 dans la prévention des accidents thrombo-emboliques au cours du traitement de 103 fractures du col du fémur.

Results of this study in the elderly with fractures of femoral neck, in whom their exists an enhanced thrombogenic risk, showed that the dose of 40 mg per 24 hours as one or two divided injections of enoxaparine was as effective as adapted subcutaneous doses of calcium heparinate. It was also less iatrogenic and easier to manage (biological assays were of little use apart from platelet counts). Clinical evidence of pulmonary embolism, or mortality, were not observed in this series of 103 patients.