Danny Hsu: Global Maternal VTE Awareness and Opportunities for Prevention
Danny Hsu, President of THANZ, Director of Therapeutic Apheresis, Immune and Obstetric Haematology at South Western Sydney Local Health District, shared RPTH Journal’s post on LinkedIn, adding:
“Congratulations Marcello Di Nisio for your leadership in this important project from the ISTH WTD steering committee!!!”
RPTH Journal shared a post on LinkedIn about a recent article by Marcello Di Nisio et al. published in RPTH, adding:
“Pregnancy-associated blood clots remain a major but underrecognized threat to maternal health worldwide.
A new global RPTH survey from the World Thrombosis Day campaign evaluated awareness of venous thromboembolism (VTE) among more than 3000 pregnant and postpartum women across 38 countries.
The findings reveal a striking global education gap:
- 70.9% of participants reported receiving either no VTE education or education only after a clot diagnosis.
- Only 10.9% had been instructed about symptoms of VTE.
- Knowledge of pulmonary embolism symptoms was particularly poor.
- Nearly one-third of respondents could not identify a single VTE risk factor.
Why does this matter?
Pregnancy and the postpartum period increase VTE risk approximately 5–10 fold, and VTE remains one of the leading causes of maternal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Yet many women reported limited understanding even after receiving counseling:
- 17% still had ‘many questions.’
- 9.2% reported poor understanding and confusion after education
- Nearly 20% experienced anxiety or psychological distress related to VTE discussions
The study also highlights disparities in education access:
- Lower awareness rates were observed among younger participants and Asian respondents
- Education was more common among women undergoing assisted reproduction or cesarean delivery
- Most education came from obstetricians/gynecologists, emphasizing the importance of integrating thrombosis counseling into routine prenatal care
One particularly important point:
Many participants were not instructed to seek urgent medical care even when informed about VTE symptoms.
This represents a major opportunity for improvement in maternal health communication and preventive care.
An important global reminder that improving thrombosis outcomes is not only about better therapeutics, it is also about education, awareness, and timely recognition.”
Title: Global survey of women’s awareness of pregnancy- and postpartum-associated venous thromboembolism (World Thrombosis Day 2025)
Authors: Marcello Di Nisio, Isabelle Mahé, Parham Sadeghipour, John Suviraj, Anila Rashid, Ann Marie O’Neill, Beverley J. Hunt, Sabrina Hadim, Fahimeh Ghotbizadeh, Ettore Porreca, Helen Okoye, Marco Liberati, Jaromir Gumulec, Saskia Middeldorp, Cihan Ay, Cedric Hermans, Manuel Monreal, Patricia Casais, Nicola Potere, Matteo Candeloro, Lana A. Castellucci, Jean M. Connors, Aaron M. Wendelboe, Danny Hsu, Lai Heng Lee, Soo-Mee Bang, Eriko Morishita, Pantep Angchaisuksiri, Daniel Duerschmied, Benedetta Madaro, Leonie Rimann, Cary R. Clark, Clarence Potter, Erich Vinicius De Paula, Stefano Barco
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