Sex hormones and venous thromboembolism - from contraception to hormone replacement therapy.

The use of sex hormones such as combined oral contraceptives (COC) or hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increases the risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE) considerably, especially in patients with an increased intrinsic risk for thromboembolic complications. Despite public and media attention and increasing scientific evidence, prescription patterns seem to be hard to change. It is well recognized that the patient's baseline risk is the most relevant factor in the absolute risk for developing VTE.