Care to know what Cleveland Clinic will be using for DVT prevention in their hospital? According to an article at Globes [online], MCS Medical Compression Systems (DBN) Ltd. is to supply the Cleveland Clinic with 1,100 of its ActiveCare DVT® devices, following a pilot study of 200 initial devices at the medical center.
The company, based in Israel, explains the benefits of its 1.5 pounds system:
Optimal Hemo-dynamic Profile – by applying a unique intermittent, sequential pressure to the patient’s leg in a systematic pattern, increasing the speed of venous blood flow and reducing the risk of clot formation. Clinical Effect – the clinical effect of the C.E.C.T ActiveCare DVT® device was outlined in a prospective randomized controlled study carried out on high risk orthopedic patients (joint arthroplasties). It was shown that the C.E.C.T protocol was 6.5 times more effective than LMWH (Low Molecular Weight Heparin) – the leading drug in the DVT prevention market (accepted for publication in the Journal of Arthroplasty in press 2005 – see Clinical Studies).In this study, DVT rates, as detected via venography in the C.E.C.T treated group, (ActiveCare DVT® and 100mg ASA 12 hours post op) were found to be only 6.6% compared to 28.3% at the LMWH group. According to the CHEST consensus forum the DVT rate in an identical group of patients treated with standard IPC devices is expected to be between 22-28%. (CHEST: January 2001, pages 141s and 143s)
Delivery of Treatment 24/7 — for the first time, a mechanical option for DVT prevention is able to cover the entire high risk period (usually a couple of weeks in the case of high risk patients) in the same way that drug therapy covers the same period of time — CONTINUOUSLY!! The fact that the ActiveCare DVT®is so tiny, amazingly light and battery operated, enables continuous treatment with unique hemodynamic properties that together produce what we have found to be the best results in DVT prevention. Wherever the patient goes – the treatment follows!
More than 50% increase in COMPLIANCE compared to IPCs- low compliance has been shown to correlate with poor clinical outcomes, and the lowest compliance levels were measured at the vulnerable period when the patient started to walk, but was not yet “fully mobile”. Clinical studies indicate that the ActiveCare DVT® dramatically increases compliance by more than 50% compared to all other stationary mechanical devices currently in use.
