DVT death rate just one in two million

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 07 Nov 2003 - 0:00 PDT


Air passengers do face an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis - the so-called 'economy class syndrome' - but are much more likely to die in a road accident, researchers claimed yesterday.

An Australian study concluded that travellers who took one long-haul flight a year had a 12 per cent increased risk of DVT.

But the researchers, from the Department of Health and Ageing, said the overall risk of death was very small - just one in every two million passengers.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, they said: 'The average risk of death from flight-related venous thromboembolism (DVT) is small compared to that from motor vehicle crashes and injuries at work.'

DVT is a condition where blood clots form, mostly in the leg, and can prove fatal if they travel to the lungs, causing an embolism.

There have been several cases around the world where passengers have collapsed with the condition after being on both long and short-haul flights.

The Australian researchers noted that people with certain medical conditions, such as being overweight or circulation problems, would face a greater than average risk.

But they also said the 'healthy traveller' effect suggested that people who travelled widely tended to be healthier.

Therefore, they were far less likely to develop blood clots than those who did not travel due to their health problems.

The researchers studied 5,408 patients admitted to hospital with DVT.

All were asked about any recent air travel, about the general state of their health and about their lfestyles.

They found that risk of DVT was highest within two weeks of arrival after a long-haul flight, with 46 Australians and 200 others developing the condition during this so-called hazard period.

The team reached several conclusions about the risks of DVT. It concluded: 'Although the average risk of venous thromboembolism is small, prospective passengers with certain medical conditions are likely to have a higher than average risk of flight-related venous thromboembolism because of the underlying risk.'

They said airlines and health authorities should continue to advise passengers about how to minimise the risk.

This includes measures such as wearing flight socks and making sure they do not dehydrate.

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