Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)

What is deep vein thrombosis?

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a serious condition that occurs when a blood clot forms in a vein located deep inside your body. A blood clot is a clump of blood that is in a gelatinous, solid state. Deep vein blood clots typically form in your thigh or lower leg, but they can also develop in other areas of your body. Other names associated with this condition include thromboembolism, post-thrombotic syndrome, and post-phlebitic syndrome.

Who is at risk for deep vein thrombosis?

DVT occurs most commonly in people who are over 50 years in age. Certain conditions that alter how your blood moves through your veins can raise your risk of developing clots. These include:

having an injury that damages your veins such as a bone fracture
being overweight, which puts more pressure on the veins in your legs and pelvis
having a family history of DVT
having a catheter placed in a vein
taking birth control pills or undergoing hormone therapy
heavy smokers
staying seated for a long time while you’re in a car or on a plane, especially if you already have at least one other risk factor

Some diseases and disorders can increase your risk of having blood clots. These include hereditary blood clotting disorders, especially when you have at least one other risk factor. Cancer and inflammatory bowel disease can also increase the risk of developing a blood clot. Heart failure, a condition that makes it more difficult for your heart to pump blood, also occurs with an increased risk of clots.

Surgery

DVT is a major risk associated with surgery. This is especially true if you’re having a surgery in the lower extremities, such as joint replacement surgery. Your doctor will discuss the risk of DVT if you need joint replacement surgery.

Pregnancy

Being pregnant increases your risk of DVT. Increased hormone levels, and a slower blood flow as your uterus expands and restricts blood flowing back from your lower extremities, contribute to this risk. This elevated risk continues until about six weeks after giving birth. Being on bed rest or having a cesarean delivery also increases your risk of having DVT.

What are the symptoms of deep vein thrombosis?

According to the doctors, symptoms of DVT only occur in about half of the people who have this condition. Common symptoms include:

swelling in your foot, ankle, or leg, usually on one side
cramping pain in your affected leg that usually begins in your calf
severe, unexplained pain in your foot and ankle
an area of skin that feels warmer than the skin on the surrounding areas
skin over the affected area turning pale or a reddish or bluish color

People may not find out that they have deep vein thrombosis until they’ve gone through emergency treatment for a pulmonary embolism. A pulmonary embolism is a life-threatening complication of DVT in which an artery in the lung becomes blocked.

When to see a doctor

When should you see a doctor if you’re concerned about deep vein thrombosis?
DVT is a serious medical condition. You should call your doctor right away if you think you’re experiencing symptoms of DVT, or go to the closest emergency room. A healthcare provider can check out your symptoms, review your medical history, and then let you know the best course of action.
If you don’t think you have DVT but are concerned that you may be at risk, you can schedule a regular appointment with your doctor. Your physician can let you know if preventive treatment may be an option for you.

What are the treatment options for deep vein thrombosis?

DVT treatments focus on keeping the clot from growing. In addition, treatment will attempt to prevent a pulmonary embolism and lower your risk of having more clots.

Medication

Your doctor might prescribe medications that thin your blood, such as heparin, warfarin, enoxaparin, or fondaparinux. This makes it harder for your blood to clot. It also keeps existing clots as small as possible and decreases the chance that you’ll develop more clots.

If blood thinners don’t work or if you have a severe case of DVT, your doctor might use thrombolytic drugs. Thrombolytic drugs work by breaking up clots. You’ll receive these intravenously.

Compression stockings

Wearing compression stockings can prevent swelling and may lower your chance of developing clots. They don’t demonstrate a reduction in recurrent DVT.
Compression stockings reach just below your knee or right above it. Your doctor may recommend you wear these every day.

Filters

You might need to have a filter put inside the large abdominal vein called the vena cava if you aren’t able to take blood thinners. This form of treatment helps prevent pulmonary embolisms by stopping clots from entering your lungs.

However, there is a risk to filters being placed. If left long term, they can actually cause DVT. They should be used short term until the risk of thromboembolism is reduced and anticoagulation can be used.

What are the complications associated with deep vein thrombosis?

A major complication of DVT is a pulmonary embolism. You can develop a pulmonary embolism if a blood clot moves to your lungs and blocks a blood vessel. This can cause serious damage to your lungs and other parts of your body. You should get immediate medical help if you have signs of a pulmonary embolism. These signs include: 
dizziness
sweating 
chest pain that gets worse with coughing or inhaling deeply
rapid breathing 
coughing up blood 
rapid heart rate

How do I prevent deep vein thrombosis?

You can lower your risk of having DVT by making a few lifestyle changes. These include keeping your blood pressure under control, giving up smoking, and losing weight if you’re overweight.
Moving your legs around when you’ve been sitting for a while also helps keep your blood flowing. Walking around after being on bed rest can prevent clots from forming.

Take any blood thinners your doctor prescribes if you’re having surgery, as this can lower your chance of developing clots afterward.

Your risk of developing DVT during travel is low, but it becomes higher if you’re sitting for more than four hours at a time while driving or flying. You can lower risk by moving around every so often — get out of your car and move around at intervals during long drives. Walk in the aisles if you’re flying, taking a train, or riding a bus. Stretch your legs and feet while you’re sitting — this keeps your blood moving steadily in your calves. Don’t wear tight clothes that can restrict blood flow.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/   

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8 Warning Signs of a Blood Clot

Blood clotting is a normal process that the human body carries out in order to stop external bleeding. However, sometimes blood clots happen when they're not meant to, such as when it's still within your veins. When this occurs, blood clotting can become life-threatening. Internal clotting can be a cause of heart attacks, strokes, as well as other serious medical conditions. Fortunately, there are 8 common ways to notice if you're suffering from a blood clot:
 

1. Swelling in One Limb

One serious type of blood clot is deep vein thrombosis (DVT). When DVT occurs, oxygen is prevented from reaching your vital organs. This results in poor blood circulation, which ends up causing swelling. If one or more of your limbs is inexplicably swollen, it would be best to consult your doctor.

 

2. Leg Pain or Tenderness

People suffering from DVT also commonly experience leg pain or tenderness. In addition to making the limbs swell, DVT may also cause the legs to ache, be sore to the touch, or to cramp up.

3. Chest Pain and Heavy Breathing

Chest pain should never be ignored, and neither should heavy breathing. If both of these symptoms are experienced simultaneously, experts say that you could be suffering from a blood clot in the lungs. Such a clot can quickly turn fatal, so should you experience these symptoms, then stop whatever you're doing, and seek medical attention right away.

4. Shortness of Breath

Much like with heavy breathing, shortness of breath is never a symptom you should ignore. If you notice that you're finding it hard to breathe, have a racing heart, feel a fluttering sensation in your chest, or experience any dizziness, then you may be suffering from a clot in the lungs. These symptoms, particularly when experienced simultaneously, warrant immediate medical attention.

5. A Random Cough Without a Cold

If you aren't ill but are coughing for seemingly no reason, then look out for other potential signs of a blood clot. These include chest pain, shortness of breath, and a noticeably increased heart rate.

6. Red Streaks Along Your Veins

If you notice red streaks on your skin that run down much of the length of your veins, then you should contact your doctor immediately. While blood clots typically cause bruising, streaking is a sign of a more severe and potentially life-threatening concern. These streaks will also make your skin feel a lot warmer to the touch, which is another way of identifying a clot.

7. Severe, Chronic Headaches

If you are continually experiencing very painful headaches, whilst also having trouble speaking or seeing, then this may indicate a blood clot in your brain. Needless to say, this is extremely serious, and you should seek medical assistance immediately.

8. Vomiting or Diarrhea

Severe diarrhea and/or vomiting is never normal under any circumstances. However, if these symptoms keep persisting, then you should contact a medical professional, as they could indicate a blood clot in the abdominal region.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                                        PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/  

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Oral drug treatment helps protect cancer patients from potentially deadly DVT and pulmonary embolism

People with cancer have an increased risk of developing blood clots, with roughly one in five experiencing venous thromboembolism (VTE) - either deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE). Blood clots in the deep veins of the leg may travel to the lungs causing a pulmonary embolism. These two conditions are referred to as VTE - a dangerous and potentially deadly medical condition of which there are 10 million cases worldwide.

Current international guidelines recommend cancer patients are injected with an anticoagulant (a low molecular weight heparin) to treat and prevent recurrence of VTE. However, new results from a large pilot trial run called ‘select-d’ suggest that a daily tablet could be a beneficial alternative for treating VTE in selected patients.

Research found that prescribing the oral drug rivaroxaban (Xarelto) significantly reduced venous thromboembolism recurrence among patients with cancer and VTE. She said: “Clinicians were already adopting the oral drug into practice for non-cancer patients and now they have data from this study to indicate that this form of treatment is an alternative option for many cancer patients who have a clot.”

Although there are many causes and risk factors for VTE, cancer patients are particularly at risk due to a combination of factors such as immobility (if in bed poorly), pancreatic and gastric tumours, and chemotherapy. Because VTE can be life-threatening, blood thinners are used to shrink existing clots and prevent others from forming. The ‘select-d’ trial enrolled 406 patients who had cancer and VTE; most (69 percent) were receiving cancer treatment (typically chemotherapy) at the time of their VTE.
Half were randomly assigned to receive low-molecular-weight heparin (dalteparin) and half were given the oral drug rivaroxaban. After six months of treatment, the VTE recurrence rate was four percent among those taking the tablet and 11 percent in those receiving dalteparin.

The results for secondary outcomes were mixed. In patients receiving rivaroxaban, there were around the same percentage of major bleeding events (6%) as those receiving dalteparin (4%) but a marked and significant increase in clinically relevant non-major bleeds (13%) with rivaroxaban compared to those having low molecular weight heparin (4%). The reason for increased bleeding is not known, it may be because rivaroxaban is more ‘potent’.
Professor Young added: “We now need to be sitting down with each one of our cancer patients with VTE, discussing their preference alongside looking at all their clinical details including whether the cancer lesion is still there, what other medications are being taken and what other conditions the patient has so that we can choose the optimal VTE treatment for each patient.”

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                                        PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/  

FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                        https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/                              
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8 Warning Signs of a Blood Clot.

Blood clotting is a normal process that the human body carries out in order to stop external bleeding. However, sometimes blood clots happen when they're not meant to, such as when it's still within your veins. When this occurs, blood clotting can become life-threatening. Internal clotting can be a cause of heart attacks, strokes, as well as other serious medical conditions. Fortunately, there are 8 common ways to notice if you're suffering from a blood clot:
1. Swelling in One Limb
One serious type of blood clot is deep vein thrombosis (DVT). When DVT occurs, oxygen is prevented from reaching your vital organs. This results in poor blood circulation, which ends up causing swelling. If one or more of your limbs is inexplicably swollen, it would be best to consult your doctor. 

2. Leg Pain or Tenderness

People suffering from DVT also commonly experience leg pain or tenderness. In addition to making the limbs swell, DVT may also cause the legs to ache, be sore to the touch, or to cramp up.

3. Chest Pain and Heavy Breathing

Chest pain should never be ignored, and neither should heavy breathing. If both of these symptoms are experienced simultaneously, experts say that you could be suffering from a blood clot in the lungs. Such a clot can quickly turn fatal, so should you experience these symptoms, then stop whatever you're doing, and seek medical attention right away.

4. Shortness of Breath

Much like with heavy breathing, shortness of breath is never a symptom you should ignore. If you notice that you're finding it hard to breathe, have a racing heart, feel a fluttering sensation in your chest, or experience any dizziness, then you may be suffering from a clot in the lungs. These symptoms, particularly when experienced simultaneously, warrant immediate medical attention.

5. A Random Cough Without a Cold

If you aren't ill but are coughing for seemingly no reason, then look out for other potential signs of a blood clot. These include chest pain, shortness of breath, and a noticeably increased heart rate.

6. Red Streaks Along Your Veins

If you notice red streaks on your skin that run down much of the length of your veins, then you should contact your doctor immediately. While blood clots typically cause bruising, streaking is a sign of a more severe and potentially life-threatening concern. These streaks will also make your skin feel a lot warmer to the touch, which is another way of identifying a clot.

7. Severe, Chronic Headaches

If you are continually experiencing very painful headaches, whilst also having trouble speaking or seeing, then this may indicate a blood clot in your brain. Needless to say, this is extremely serious, and you should seek medical assistance immediately.

8. Vomiting or Diarrhea

Severe diarrhea and/or vomiting is never normal under any circumstances. However, if these symptoms keep persisting, then you should contact a medical professional, as they could indicate a blood clot in the abdominal region.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                                      PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/   

FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                           https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/                              
FOR CROCHET DESIGNS                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         https://my crochet creations.blogspot.com  

  

 

Warning Signs of a Blood Clot

Blood clotting is a normal process that the human body carries out in order to stop external bleeding. However, sometimes blood clots happen when they're not meant to, such as when it's still within your veins. When this occurs, blood clotting can become life-threatening. Internal clotting can be a cause of heart attacks, strokes, as well as other serious medical conditions. Fortunately, there are 8 common ways to notice if you're suffering from a blood clot:

1. Swelling in One Limb

One serious type of blood clot is deep vein thrombosis (DVT). When DVT occurs, oxygen is prevented from reaching your vital organs. This results in poor blood circulation, which ends up causing swelling. If one or more of your limbs is inexplicably swollen, it would be best to consult your doctor.

2. Leg Pain or Tenderness

People suffering from DVT also commonly experience leg pain or tenderness. In addition to making the limbs swell, DVT may also cause the legs to ache, be sore to the touch, or to cramp up.

3. Chest Pain and Heavy Breathing

Chest pain should never be ignored, and neither should heavy breathing. If both of these symptoms are experienced simultaneously, experts say that you could be suffering from a blood clot in the lungs. Such a clot can quickly turn fatal, so should you experience these symptoms, then stop whatever you're doing, and seek medical attention right away.

4. Shortness of Breath

Much like with heavy breathing, shortness of breath is never a symptom you should ignore. If you notice that you're finding it hard to breathe, have a racing heart, feel a fluttering sensation in your chest, or experience any dizziness, then you may be suffering from a clot in the lungs. These symptoms, particularly when experienced simultaneously, warrant immediate medical attention.

 

5. A Random Cough Without a Cold

If you aren't ill but are coughing for seemingly no reason, then look out for other potential signs of a blood clot. These include chest pain, shortness of breath, and a noticeably increased heart rate.

6. Red Streaks Along Your Veins

If you notice red streaks on your skin that run down much of the length of your veins, then you should contact your doctor immediately. While blood clots typically cause bruising, streaking is a sign of a more severe and potentially life-threatening concern. These streaks will also make your skin feel a lot warmer to the touch, which is another way of identifying a clot.

7. Severe, Chronic Headaches

If you are continually experiencing very painful headaches, whilst also having trouble speaking or seeing, then this may indicate a blood clot in your brain. Needless to say, this is extremely serious, and you should seek medical assistance immediately.

8. Vomiting or Diarrhea

Severe diarrhea and/or vomiting is never normal under any circumstances. However, if these symptoms keep persisting, then you should contact a medical professional, as they could indicate a blood clot in the abdominal region.

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