Pulmonary embolism and deep venous thrombosis during pregnancy or oral contraceptive use: Prevalence of factor V Leiden

Activated protein C resistance caused by factor V Leiden mutation is the most common inherited cause of an underlying predisposition to pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep venous thrombosis (DVT). We studied the frequency of the factor V Leiden mutation in 50 women who had PE and/or DVT during or after pregnancy or during oral contraceptive use. Ten (20%; 95% CI 10% to 34%) of the 50 women were heterozygous for the mutation. First-trimester PE or DVT developed in 6 (60%; 95% CI, 26% to 88%) of the 10 women with the mutation compared with 3 (8%; 95% CI 2% to 20%) of 40 women without the mutation (p = 0.0009). These data indicate that the factor V Leiden mutation is an important risk factor for PE or DVT during pregnancy (especially the first trimester), after pregnancy, or during oral contraceptive use.