Increased incidence of venous thromboembolism associated with inferior vena cava filter placement in patients diagnosed with isolated calf deep vein thrombosis after intracranial hemorrhage or intracranial operation

In this study, we sought to investigate the effectiveness of inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placement in reducing the incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients diagnosed with isolated calf deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after an intracranial hemorrhage or intracranial operation. A retrospective chart review (January 2000-December 2019) was performed to identify patients diagnosed with calf DVT after intracranial hemorrhage or intracranial operation. A total of 100 patients met the study criteria and were divided into groups based on treatment: IVC filter placement (n = 22), prophylactic anticoagulation (n = 42), or imaging surveillance (n = 36). Treatment-related complications were identified, and differences between groups in the primary endpoint (VTE occurrence after DVT diagnosis) were assessed using logistic regression. VTE occurred in 15 patients after calf DVT diagnosis. The rate of VTE was higher in the IVC filter group (9/22; 41%) than in the anticoagulation (2/42; 5%; p = 0.002) and surveillance (4/36; 11%; p = 0.013) groups. These treatment effects remained significant after adjustments were made for baseline characteristics (IVC filter vs anticoagulation, p = 0.009; IVC filter vs surveillance, p = 0.019). There was a single occurrence of pulmonary embolism in the surveillance group (3%). A single case of IVC filter thrombus was identified; no anticoagulation-related complications were reported. The findings of this study do not support IVC filter placement as a primary and solitary treatment for isolated calf DVT occurring after intracranial hemorrhage or intracranial operation.