Advances in Hematology

BC Superficial vein thrombosis (SVT) is the preferred term to indicate thrombosis of any segment of the superficial vein system. SVT encompasses some older terms, such as superficial phlebitis (also called superficial thrombo­ phlebitis); suppurative thrombophlebitis (also called septic thrombophlebitis); and superficial femoral vein thrombosis (a misnomer). SVT also encompasses many current terms, such as infusion thrombophlebitis (thrombosis caused by catheter insertion, venipuncture, or intravenous drug infusion); varicose vein thrombosis (thrombosis involving dilated varicose veins, usually in the subcutaneous tissue of the legs); Mondor disease (thrombophlebitis involving the breast veins or the dorsal penile vein); and Trousseau syndrome (migratory thrombophlebitis associated with malignancy). This variety of terms reflects the multiple sites and causes of SVT. The lower limbs are the most common site of SVT, especially in association with varicose veins. Studies conducted in secondary and tertiary care centers have found that lower limb SVT, which typically is diag­ nosed in outpatients, appears to occur more frequently than deep vein thrombosis (DVT). In the STEPH (Inci­ dence of Superficial Vein Thrombosis) study,1 however, which was conducted in a community of 265,687 people in France, the yearly rate of lower limb SVT was 0.64 per 1000. This is lower than the estimated yearly rate of venous thromboembolism (VTE), which is 1 per 1000. In the STEPH study, SVT involved the long saphenous vein in 50% to 60% of cases, the short saphenous vein in 11% to 15% of cases, and tributaries of the long and short saphenous veins in 30% to 40% of cases. SVT of the upper limbs can affect as many as 25% to 35% of hospitalized patients, in whom upper limb SVT is espe­ cially likely to develop. In rare cases, thrombosis can affect superficial veins in other parts of the body, such as the abdominal wall, thoracic wall, and neck.