Deep Vein Thrombosis Facts
Important Facts About Deep Vein Thrombosis
If you have DVT, these Deep Vein Thrombosis facts can help you deal with it as effectively as possible.
• Deep Vein Thrombosis, which is a blood clot in a deep vein in the leg, is a growing health concern. The CDC does not have an exact number of people who are affected by deep vein thrombosis; facts say that in the United States alone, there are between 200,000 and 400,000 people who have DVT.
• Almost a third of people who have had deep vein thrombosis suffer from a secondary condition known as post-thrombotic syndrome. This results in swelling, discoloration, scaling and pain in the affected limb. This is a long-term condition, generally, and can be disabling.
• Deep vein thrombosis is caused when a clot forms in one of the deep veins in the leg, which are responsible for returning blood to the heart. The heart pushes the blood out, through arteries, but it depends on muscle movement to bring the blood back to the heart, through veins. A clot in the leg is not dangerous in and of itself. But deep vein thrombosis facts point out that if a piece of the clot breaks off, it may follow the bloodstream back through the heart and become trapped in the lung. This is known as pulmonary embolism.
• The symptoms of deep vein thrombosis are swelling of the affected leg, and a deep pain that feels like a severe muscle pull. You may also experience that the leg is warm to the touch, and red in color. Even if the clot is in the lower leg, is it not uncommon for the upper leg to also swell and become extremely painful, and vice-versa.
• If you are experiencing any of the symptoms above, it is important to get to a physician or emergency room as soon as possible. After diagnosing the clot, usually through a venal ultrasound, your physician will keep you in-hospital if needed, and put you on a heparin drip or other blood thinner, and Coumadin, both done to thin the blood. These medications prevent the clot from growing, and from forming an embolus that might travel from the leg to the lung.
• The best way to prevent deep venal thrombosis, facts conclude, is to make sure that if you are off your feet for any length of time (after surgery, or on a long plane flight, for example), you walk as often as you can, to keep the muscles in the legs continually pumping blood back to the heart. If you have previously had DVT, you will be put on Coumadin (warfarin) as a blood thinner until your doctor determines that your blood as at the point where he wants it. Normally, then, you will be put on an aspirin regimen, to help keep your blood from clotting in the future.