Anticoagulation for central venous catheters in patients with cancer.

Central venous catheters (CVCs) are increasingly used in medical practice worldwide, and regardless of the differences among the various types of CVCs,1 these devices cause an increased risk of venous thromboembolism.2 The magnitude of the problem is highly dependent on whether the focus of evaluation is symptomatic venous thromboembolism (incidence, <1 to 28%) or asymptomatic venous thromboembolism (incidence, 27 to 66%) and on the type of diagnostic imaging that is used (venography being the most sensitive one).2 CVC-associated venous thromboembolism is a major clinical problem in terms of venous-access loss, the risk of pulmonary embolism, and additional costs....