Correlates, Trends, and Short-Term Outcomes of Venous Thromboembolism in Hospitalized Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background and Aim: The incidence and overall mortality of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the US have been increasing over the past decade. Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. This study aims at examining the epidemiology, risk factors, and short-term outcomes of VTE in hospitalized patients with HCC. Methods: We utilized the National Inpatient Sample for the years 2008–2013. Using the International Classification of Diseases codes, ninth edition, we identified hospitalized adult patients with a prior diagnosis of HCC who were diagnosed with VTE. Weighted multivariate logistic regression models were used to examine the effect of patients’ sociodemographic and clinical characteristics on the occurrence of VTE, and to evaluate the impact of VTE on in-hospital mortality and length of hospital stay. Results: We identified a total of 54,275 hospitalized patients with a prior diagnosis of HCC. The prevalence of VTE in the study cohort was 2.8% (2.5% in 2008 to 3.0% in 2013, a statistically significant increase). Older age, African American ethnicity, history of metastasis, and higher Elixhauser comorbidity index were associated with higher odds of VTE. However, having a prior diagnosis of cirrhosis, hepatitis C, or diabetes mellitus were associated with lower odds of VTE in HCC patients. Furthermore, development of VTE was associated with longer hospital stay and increased in-hospital mortality. Conclusion: Our work highlights significant age, racial, and comorbid factors in the development of VTE in hospitalized patients with HCC in the US. These findings can help in stratification of HCC patients according to their VTE risk. Patients at higher risk of VTE may benefit from more aggressive pharmacologic prophylaxis, an area for future investigation.