As a sponsor accredited by the ACCME, it is the policy of the EOCME to require the disclosure of the existence of any significant financial interest or any other relationship a faculty member has with the manufacturer(s) of any commercial product discussed during his/her presentation.

The faculty have disclosed the following:

Faculty Member		Manufacturer		Relationship
Joseph A. Caprini, MD, MS, FACS, RVT, FACPh		AstraZeneca		Advisory Board
		AstraZeneca, The sanofi-aventis Group, GlaxoSmithKline, Tyco Healthcare		Speakers' Bureau
		Tyco Healthcare		Consultant
Deepak L. Bhatt, MD, FACC, FSCAI, FESC		Bristol-Myers Squibb, The sanofi-aventis Group		Grants/Research Support
Geno J. Merli, MD, FACP		AstraZeneca, The sanofi-aventis Group		Grants/Research Support, Consultant, Speakers’ Bureau
		Bacchus Vascular		Consultant
		Bayer Pharmaceuticals		Grants/Research Support

CME CREDIT STATEMENT

The EOCME designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1 Category 1 credit toward the AMA Physician’s Recognition Award. Each physician should claim only those credits that he/she actually spent in the educational activity. PROGRAM GOAL There are >2 million cases of venous thromboembolism (VTE) reported in the United States each year. For the most part, it is a disease of hospitalized patients, with pulmonary embolism (PE) being one of the top preventable causes of mortality in these individuals. A variety of measures are available to reduce or eliminate the risk of VTE. These include careful risk assessment and the use of thromboprophylaxis. In view of the decreasing lengths of hospitalization and the long-term risk of a thromboembolic event, there is a need for extended prophylaxis in the outpatient setting to further reduce the incidence of VTE. This publication addresses these issues. FINANCIAL SUPPORT This CME activity is sponsored by an unrestricted educational grant from sanofi-aventis U.S. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES At the conclusion of this educational activity, participants will be able to: Discuss risk assessment models for VTE. Identify patients at risk for VTE and PE. Understand and implement the use of thromboprophylactic measures in patients at risk of an event. Compare efficacy and safety of low-molecular-weight heparin versus unfractionated heparin and list the appropriate clinical utilization of each. CONTENT DEVELOPMENT Joseph A. Caprini, MD, MS, FACS, RVT, FACPh, Guest Editor Geno J. Merli, MD, FACP, Chairman Deepak L. Bhatt, MD, FACC, FSCAI, FESC, Chairman Cindy Jablonowski, MA Mark J. Flanick, MS This program is jointly sponsored by the EOCME and Excerpta Medica, Inc. The opinions expressed in these pages are those of the chairmen and are not attributable to the sponsor or grantor, or to the publisher and editor. Release date: May 2005. UNAPPROVED/OFF-LABEL USE DISCLOSURE Faculty may discuss information about pharmaceutical agents that is outside of US Food and Drug Administration–approved labeling. This information is intended solely for continuing medical education and is not intended to promote off-label use of these medications. If you have questions, contact the medical affairs department of the manufacturer for the most recent prescribing information.