DVT Mobility Research: Better Decisions for the Patient

Show Notes

Should an acute lower-extremity DVT automatically stop mobility when anticoagulation is subtherapeutic? In this episode, Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Nicole Neveau speak with Aubrey Little, PT, DPT, CCS, and Becky Johnson, PT, DPT, PhD, about the clinical question that grew from a quality-improvement project into a case-control study published in the Journal of Acute Care Physical Therapy.

Little and Johnson explain why a single laboratory value or protocol checkpoint cannot replace a comprehensive assessment. They discuss weighing the risks of immobility against potential adverse events while considering clot location, medical acuity, hemodynamic status, medications, laboratory trends, discharge pressures and the patient’s overall trajectory. The conversation also explores the documentation needed to make clinical reasoning visible and the value of bidirectional conversations with the interdisciplinary team.

The study included 30 patients and 60 physical therapy sessions. Its findings do not establish that mobilization at subtherapeutic anticoagulation is universally safe. The researchers emphasize the limitations of a small retrospective sample and their inability to determine whether pulmonary embolism occurred. Instead, the episode offers a thoughtful look at risk stratification, evidence-informed judgment and how clinicians can question automatic holds without abandoning patient safety.

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Today’s Guests:

Aubrey Little PT, DPT

aulittle@gmail.com

Becky Johnson PT, DPT, PhD

rjohns1@midwestern.edu

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-johnson-pt-dpt-phd-619244112/

Guest Quotes: