Diagnostic value of infrared thermography in deep venous thrombosis of lower extremities

Objective To analyze the diagnostic value of infrared thermography in deep venous thrombosis of lower extremities, in order to provide reference for clinical diagnosis and improve the accuracy of diagnosis. Methods Ninety-two patients with suspected lower extremity deep venous thrombosis were selected from September 2018 to September 2019 in Shaoxing People's Hospital. All patients underwent color Doppler ultrasonography and infrared thermography. Both examinations were performed in the same time period(interval time was controlled within 30 minutes). The detection results of central, peripheral and mixed deep vein thrombosis of the lower extremity were compared and analyzed. The diagnostic results of color Doppler ultrasound were gold standard. The diagnostic value of infrared thermography was analyzed. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated. Results Fifty-four cases of deep venous thrombosis of lower limbs were detected by color Doppler ultrasound, the detection rate was 58.7%. Fifty-eight cases of deep venous thrombosis of lower limbs were detected by infrared thermography, the detection rate was 63.0%. The detection rates of the two groups were similar, the difference was not statistically significant(χ²=0.365, P=0.546). With the diagnostic results of color Doppler ultrasound as the gold standard, the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of infrared thermography in the diagnosis of lower extremity deep venous thrombosis were 71.7%, 74.1%, 67.6%, 79.6% and 60.5%, respectively. Conclusion Infrared thermography has certain application value in the diagnosis of lower extremity deep venous thrombosis. The detection rate is similar to that of color Doppler ultrasound. It has the advantages of short examination time and large-scale examination. It can be used as an auxiliary means for clinical screening of suspected lower extremity deep venous thrombosis and is worth promoting.