J.V. Llau (ed.), Thromboembolism in Orthopedic Surgery, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4471-4336-9_2, © Springer-Verlag London 2013 Abstract Venous thromboembolic disease in hospitalized patients results in substantial mortality, morbidity, and healthcare resource use. While the true incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) is dif fi cult to determine, autopsy studies have shown that 5–10 % of hospital dea...