Venous Thromboembolism (VTE)

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a complex vascular disease with a multifactorial pathogenesis that results in two major clinical manifestations. The first and more common manifestation is deep venous thrombosis (DVT), which usually arises in the deep veins of the calf and spreads upward. Pulmonary embolism (PE), the second and more serious manifestation, occurs as a complication of DVT proximal to the deep calf veins. When a blood clot breaks loose and travels in the blood, this is called a venous thromboembolism (VTE). The abbreviation DVT/PE refers to a VTE where a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) has moved to the lungs (PE).