Comparative Effectiveness of Pulmonary Embolism Prevention after Hip and Knee Replacement (PEPPER): Balancing Safety and Effectiveness

The purpose of the study “Comparative Effectiveness of Pulmonary Embolism Prevention after Hip and Knee Replacement (PEPPER)” which is funded through a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) award, is to combine information about effectiveness in preventing blood clots in the lungs and legs with the opinions of patients about the safety of the most commonly employed blood thinners. This work will provide background information to help both patients and their surgeons in deciding which blood thinner would be best to use after hip and knee replacement.In order to generate enough data to achieve the purpose of PEPPER, approximately 20,000 patients undergoing elective total hip or knee replacements will be enrolled at 25 centers over a period of over 4 years. The principal investigator is Vincent Pellegrini, M.D, vice chair of research for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.