 |
Dr Irene Braithwaite Deputy Director, Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, Wellington, NZ |
| Dr Irene Braithwaite is a deputy director at the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand and is responsible for the venous thromboembolism research programme. She currently holds a Clinical Training Fellowship with the Health Research Council to undertake a PhD at Victoria University of Wellington investigating immobility and venous thromboembolism. She is specifically focusing on seated immobility in the workplace and with computer use, and on lower limb immobilisation. Originally from a music and management background; she graduated from the Otago University School of Medicine in 2006. Venous Thromboembolism and Long Distance Travelling: Theory, Observation, Hypothesis Testing and Guidelines
In 1853, Virchow described the triad of contributory factors for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) comprising the syndrome of venous thromboembolism (VTE): endothelial injury, stasis of blood flow and hypercoagulability. The clinical importance of protracted seated immobility causing venous stasis was first described by Simpson during the World War II, with an increased incidence of fatal PE attributed to the prolonged periods of sitting in deckchairs while sheltering in bunkers during the blitz. The rate of PEs was noted to markedly decline when the chairs were replaced by stretchers where occupants could lay flat. This presentation discusses the history of the association between VTE and travel as it developed in the medical literature throughout the latter half of the 20th century leading to agreement on the likely causal association between VTE and long distance air travel and consequently leading to the development of guidelines to reduce the risk of travel related VTE. |