The paper discusses guidelines for the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE), with particular emphasis on the use of mechanical methods. Mechanical prophylaxis of VTE does not involve the risk of bleeding, which may be life‑threatening. Mechanical methods are particularly recommended in patients at high risk of bleeding while on pharmacological thromboprophylaxis. Although antithrombotic prophylaxis is safe and cost‑effective, there is evidence that the majority of preventive measures are applied too rarely in clinical practice, and that only a small proportion of patients receive complete and appropriate prophylaxis in the real‑world clinical setting.