Hospital marks World Thrombosis Day
Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) marked the World Thrombosis Day on October 12, 2018 with a walk from Chandaria Cancer and Chronic Disease Centre to Eldoret town and around the Hospital in support of the day and for creating awareness amongst members of the public.
The day is aimed at raising awareness about thrombosis – the underlying cause of the world’s top three cardiovascular killers: heart attack, stroke and venous thromboembolism (VTE).
VTE is a condition in which blood clots (most often) in the deep veins of the leg (known as deep vein thrombosis, DVT) and can travel in the circulation and lodge in the lungs (known as pulmonary embolism, PE). VTE is a life-threatening but often preventable condition that affects millions of people worldwide.
Observed on 13 October, World Thrombosis Day is an annual event led by the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) and carried out by hundreds of organizations holding more than 9,000 events worldwide. Now in its fifth year, World Thrombosis Day’s focus is Know Thrombosis, which encourages the general public, healthcare professionals, and key decision makers to know the risk factors, signs, and symptoms of the condition.
Hospitalization is a top risk factor for VTE, with up to 60 percent of all VTEs occurring during or after hospitalization. VTE is the leading preventable cause of hospital death.
MTRH has one of the few formal anticoagulation clinics in Kenya, with over 3,200 ever enrolled patients, 58% of whom have been or are being treated for VTE.