UH Expert Lead Author of New Report Detailing Appropriateness of Care for Deep Venous Procedures

Innovations in Cardiovascular Medicine & Surgery | September 2024

Vascular surgeon Karem Harth, MD, Director of the Center for Comprehensive Venous Care at University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, is lead author of a new comprehensive report providing guidance on the rapidly changing field of venous disease.

Karem Harth, MD

“In the past decade, technologies to treat venous pathologies have increased dramatically, to the benefit of an often underserved and overlooked population of patients with venous disease,” she writes in Seminars in Vascular Surgery.  “However, given the rapid release of various technologies, including venous-dedicated stents and thrombectomy devices across varied venous pathologies, evidence-based guidelines have been slow to develop.”

The new document addresses appropriateness of care in deep venous disease of the lower extremity, inappropriate use of deep venous procedures for the lower extremities, acute thrombotic iliofemoral disease, IVUS, and antithrombotics and antiplatelets. It also includes a discussion of data on thrombus-clearing devices and deep pelvic venous stenting, among other topics.

Dr. Harth says she hopes this new report will help advance the field.

“When discussing appropriateness of care, one needs to consider optimal patient selection, technical approach, medical management, and surveillance protocols, to name a few,” she says. “All of which, in the venous space, are currently widely varied in practice. The future of deep venous work is limitless, but multicenter, randomized controlled trials are needed to optimally treat patients with venous disease.”

Contributing Expert:
Karem Harth, MD
Director, Center for Comprehensive Venous Care
University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute
Associate Professor of Surgery
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine