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DEEPVEINTHROMBOSIS(DVT)ADVICELEAFLET

AreYouAtRiskofGettingaBloodClot?

Thisleafletisimportantreadingforanyonewho:

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Ispregnant
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Isover40yearsold

Isnotmobile

Isgoingintohospital

Hascancer

Isusingthecombinedoralcontraceptivepill(OCP)orhormonereplacementtherapy(HRT)

Iscontemplatinglongdistancetravel

Isobese

HasafamilyhistoryofDVT

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HashadapreviousDVTorpulmonaryembolism

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HasthrombophiliabloodchangesthatpredisposetoDVT

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Hasaplastercast

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Hasrecentlyhadsurgery

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Hasnoprevioushistory,buthassymptomsofDVT

Ifyoucantickmorethanoneoftheseboxesyourriskofhavingathrombosisisgreaterthanaverageandyoushouldseek
medicaladvice.
WhatisaDVT?
Adeepveinthrombosis(DVT)isaclotwhichhasformedinadeepvein,usuallyintheleg.Itmostcommonlyformsinthecalf,
butcanalsoforminthethighorindeepveinsinotherpartsofthebody.Deepveinsarethelargerveinsthatgothroughthe
muscles(nottheveinsyoucanseejustbelowthesurfaceoftheskin)andcarrybloodtowardstheheart.

Whydobloodclotsformintheveins?

Bloodnormallyflowsquicklythroughtheveinshelpedalongbymovementofthemuscleswhichsqueezetheveinsanddoes
not usually clot. Occasionally thrombosis sometimes occurs for no clear reason; however, there are certain circumstances
whichincreasetheriskofhavingaDVTe.g.immobilityanddamagetotheveinwalls,especiallyinpeoplewhomaybemore
susceptiblethroughgenetichistory.

WhatmakesyoumoreatriskofdevelopingaDVT?

Pregnancyincreasestheriskofclottingandabout1in1000pregnantwomendevelopaDVT.
Age:OlderpeoplearemorelikelytohaveaDVT,particularlyiftheyareimmobileorhaveaseriousmedicalconditionsuchas
cancer.
Immobility:Lackofmobilitycausestheflowofbloodintheveinstoslowleadingtoanincreasedlikelihoodofclotting.
Goingintohospital:Asurgicaloperationwhichlastsmorethan30minutesincreasestherisktoo,especiallyinpeoplemore
susceptibletoDVT.
Cancer:Cancerandsomechemotherapydrugscandamagetheveins.Cancerpatientsareoftenlessmobile,alsoincreasingthe
chancesofdevelopingaDVT.
ThePillorHormoneReplacementTherapy:Theoralcontraceptivepill(OCP)andhormonereplacementtherapy(HRT)that
containoestrogencanincreasetheriskofaDVT.

Longdistancetravel:Longjourneysbyplane,train,orcarcauseaminorincreaseintheriskofDVT.
Familyhistory:Someinheritedconditions,suchasFactorVLeiden,whichcausesthebloodtoclotmoreeasily,canleadtoan
increasedriskofDVT.
Obesity:BeingsignificantlyoverweightincreasesyourchancesofdevelopingaDVT.

WhatarethesymptomsofaDVT?

ThetypicalsymptomsofDVTarepainandtendernessinthecalfwithasensationofheatandswellingsometimesassociated
withskindiscolouration,usuallyinthecalfbutsometimesthewholelegcanbeaffected,particularlyinpregnancy.However,
80%ofDVTsproducenosymptomsatallandareonlydiagnosedifacomplicationsuchaspulmonaryembolismoccurs.

WhattestswillIhave?

ItisoftenhardforadoctortobesureofadiagnosisofDVTjustfromthesymptoms,aspainandswellinginthecalfcanbe
causedbyotherreasonssuchmusclestrainorinfectionforexample.IfyouhaveasuspectedDVTyouwillnormallybeadvised
tohavesometestsdoneurgentlytoconfirmthediagnosis.Twocommonlyusedtestsare:

a. TheDdimertest:ThisisusuallypositiveinDVTbutcanbepositiveinotherconditions.
b. Ultrasoundscan:Anultrasoundscandetectsaclotinaveinandisusedinmostpatients.

Thesetestsarenot100%conclusiveasthereisnodefinitivetestforDVTandmoredetailedtestsmaybenecessaryandmay
include for example a contrast venogram where dye is injected into the vein and then xrayed to see if the blood flow is
interrupted.

IsaDVTserious?

Itcanbeaveryseriousandpotentiallylifethreateningcondition.

Pulmonaryembolism(PE):Thisiswhenpartofabloodclotbreaksoffandtravelsinthebloodstream.Itiscalledanembolus.
Theclotwillbecarriedupintothelargerveins,throughtheheart,andbecomeslodgedinthelung.Thisiscalledapulmonary
embolus(PE).Symptomscanincludeshortnessofbreath,eithersuddenorofgradualonset,chestpainwhichcanbeworseon
breathinginandsuddencollapse.ThesymptomsofDVT(pain,tendernessandswelling)mayalsobepresent.

WhatisthetreatmentforaDVT?

Treatment for DVT is anticoagulation with either heparin or warfarin, although there will be some new anticoagulant drugs
soon. Heparin works by making the bodys natural blood thinner work better. Warfarin takes a few days for the warfarin
tabletstoworkfullyandsoheparininjectionsareoftenusedforthefirstfewdaysafterdiagnosis.Youwillneedregularblood
testswhilstyouareonwarfarintoensurethatthelevelisrighttoomuchandyouriskincreasedbleedingandtoolittlemay
notstopmoreclotsforming.Ifyouarepregnantregularheparininjectionsmaybecontinuedinplaceofwarfarintreatment.
The length of time you will continue on treatment is usually 3 to 6 months. However, some people continue to have an
increasedriskofDVTandwillneedtostayonanticoagulationinthelongterm.Yourdoctororhospitalspecialistwilladvise
youaccordingly.Youmayalsobeadvisedtousecompressionstockingstocompressthelegveins,whichstimulatesbloodflow.

PreventingorreducingtheriskofaDVT

Avoidprolongedperiodsofimmobilitysuchassittinginachairformanyhours.Ifpossiblegetupandwalkaroundnowand
thenor,evenbetter,takeregularexercise,forexamplearegularwalkfor3060minutesaday.Whengoingonlongtripson
planes,trainsorinthecar,getupandwalkaroundeverysooftenandperformcalfexerciseswhensitting.Justbeingunwell
andinhospitalifyouareundergoingsurgery,particularlyabdominalororthopaedic,increasesyourchancesofaDVT.Youmay
alreadybeatahigherriskjustbyyourfamilymedicalhistory;thiscanbecheckedoutbyasimplebloodtest,whichmayshow
youhaveageneticsusceptibilitytoDVT.

Thisleafletisnotintendedtobeacomprehensivepatientguide.Ifindoubtalwaysseekadditionalinformation/advicefrom
yourGP,NHS24(08454242424)oryourhospitalspecialist

ThisleafletwasproducedinconjunctionwithLifeblood:TheThrombosisCharity.Furtherinformationonvenousthrombosisand
otherthrombosisrelatedtopicsandlinkscanbefoundontheirwebsiteatwww.thrombosischarity.org.uk

ThisleafletwascreatedinmemoryofKatieMcPherson,whotragicallydiedofapulmonaryembolismattheageof23

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