Matharu GS, Garriga C, Whitehouse MR, et al. - This study was attempted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of aspirin compared with direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis following total hip and knee replacement (THR and TKR) using the world’s largest joint replacement registry. Researchers reviewed the National Joint Registry linked to English hospital inpatient episodes for 218,650 THR and TKR patients. They separately matched patients who received aspirin to direct thrombin inhibitors, and factor Xa inhibitors using propensity scores. The study found that compared with aspirin, the risk of VTE was lower in patients receiving DOACs following THR and TKR. DOACs were correlated with a decreased length of stay, and DOACs did not elevate the risk of further surgery, wound problems, bleeding complications, or mortality compared with aspirin.