Continuing Use of Inferior Vena Cava Filters Despite Data and Recommendations Against Their Use in Patients With Deep Venous Thrombosis.

The purpose of the present investigation is to determine the response to the evidence and recommendations against the use of inferior vena cava (IVC) filters in patients with deep venous thrombosis (DVT). This was a retrospective cohort study based on administrative data from the National Hospital Discharge Survey 1979 to 2006 and from the National (Nationwide) Inpatient Sample 2007 to 2014. The number of IVC filters inserted in patients with lone DVT peaked in 2009 and then decreased from 2009 to 2014. The proportion of patients with lone DVT who received an IVC filter peaked in 2010 and then decreased from 2010 to 2014. Both the number of IVC filters inserted yearly and the proportion of patients who received an IVC filter remained higher than in 1998 when a randomized controlled trial showed no reduced mortality with permanent IVC filters in patients with DVT. In conclusion, large numbers of patients with lone DVT continue to receive IVC filters despite a randomized controlled trial that showed no reduced mortality with IVC filters in patients with DVT and despite clinical guideline recommendations against the use of IVC filters in such patients.