Korean J Med.  2005 Nov;69(5):541-544.

Portal vein thrombosis that successfully treated with low molecular weight heparin in acute pancreatitis

• Ko H
• Jung SH
• Yoon SJ
• Kim AN
• John BM
• Choi GY
• Kim JH

Abstract

Portal vein thrombosis is an uncommon cause for presinusoidal hypertension, which results from inherited thrombotic disorder, neoplasm, and intra-abdominal inflammation like pancreatitis. It could develop portal hypertension, culminating in variceal bleeding from esophagus or stomach. One of the medical management of portal vein thrombosis is intravenous heparinization followed by long term oral anticoagulation. Intravenous heparinization using unfractionated heparin requires aPTT monitoring for dose adjustment which is not needed for low molecular weight heparin, and has higher risk of bleeding than using low molecular weight heparin. However, the standard protocol for anticoagulation in portal vein thrombosis has not been determined yet. We experienced a case of portal vein thrombosis in acute necrotizing pancreatitis, which was successfully treated with low molecular weight heparin, as herein reported.

Keyword

Pancreatitis; Venous thrombosis; Anticoagulants

MeSH Terms

Anticoagulants
Esophageal and Gastric Varices
Esophagus
Hemorrhage
Heparin
Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight*
Hypertension
Hypertension, Portal
Inflammation
Pancreatitis*
Pancreatitis, Acute Necrotizing
Portal Vein*
Stomach
Venous Thrombosis*
Anticoagulants
Heparin
Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight