Risk Factors Associated With Venous Thromboembolism in Individuals With COPD: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

ObjectiveCurrently, no comprehensive analysis of the risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients has been reported. We aimed to explore the risk factors for VTE among individuals with COPD using meta-analysis.MethodsPubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science and Embase were searched from database to February 2025 for case-control and cohort studies that assessed the risk factors for VTE among COPD patients. Pooled odds ratios (ORs), mean differences (MDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to determine the risk factors.ResultsA total of 23 clinical studies were included. Being female, atelectasis, prolonged immobility, invasive mechanical ventilation, neoplasia and chest pain (P < .05 for all) increased the risk of VTE in COPD. In addition, lower levels of PaO2 (MD: -2.12; 95% CI: -4.04, -0.19; I2 = 0%; P = .03), lower levels of PaCO2 (MD, -3.62; 95% CI: -6.96, -0.27; I2 = 65%; P = .03), higher levels of D-dimer (MD, 1.31; 95% CI: 0.13, 2.50; I2 = 75%; P = .03), increasing of age (MD: 2.05; 95% CI: 0.42, 3.68; I2 = 90%; P = .01) and having a history of venous thrombosis (OR, 4.87; 95% CI 1.91-12.41; I2 = 90%; P = .0009) were associated with VTE. However, diabetes was not identified as significant risk factors for VTE in COPD.ConclusionsThis review provides a comprehensive overview of the quality of the evidence base for the risk factors of VTE in patients with COPD. Healthcare professional should be aware of the risk factors for VTE when rehabilitating patients with COPD.