March is DVT Awareness Month

DVT is an important subject for my family. My dad had an unexplained blood clot in his leg at age 51. Fortunately, it was identified quickly and it did not break off and go to his lungs (a Pulmonary Embolism or PE for short).

Unfortunately, my sister developed a blood clot in her leg that went undetected for a few weeks at the age of 34. Her leg was very, very swollen and she was in pain, but not the sharp kind like my dad had (and he had no swelling). Even after she got on the blood thinner, she developed PE’s as she had 6 clots go to her lungs. She had 1 in her jugular vein as well and her neck was very swollen.

After her clot and after they ruled out cancer as a cause, they suspected that my sister had a clotting disorder – a Factor V Leiden mutation. Meg was tested, I was tested, and it turns out that we shared that mutation causing a hypercoagulable state of our blood. This means that we have a predisposition to blood clotting, and if you develop a blood clot you are more likely to develop another one. With the life threatening condition of a PE, Meg is on coumiden every day for the rest of her life.

As for my dad, he takes a baby aspirin every day per his doctor. I take one too even though it has not been prescribed and I had to get off The Pill (which I had taken for almost 20 years at that point – scary as that exponentially increases the risk). I am also cognizant of long trips in cars, sitting for long periods of time at my desk, traveling, and the need to stay hydrated.

Do you remember David Bloom of NBC News? That is how he died while covering the Iraq war – he developed a blood clot in his leg and it broke off and became a PE. His wife Melanie has established The Coalition to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), and March is DVT awareness month. There is some great information on her website, and there is a risk analysis as well to assist you in determining if you are at risk. In this case, prevention is worth 100 pounds of cure.

DVT occurs when a blood clot forms in a deep vein, usually in the lower limbs. A complication of DVT, pulmonary embolism, can occur when a fragment of a blood clot breaks loose from the wall of the vein and migrates to the lungs, where it blocks a pulmonary artery or one of its branches.

• Up to 2 million Americans are affected annually by DVT
• Of those who develop PE, up to 300,000 will die each year
• More people die in the United States from PE than breast cancer and AIDS combined

Who is at Risk?

Certain individuals may be at risk for developing DVT, although DVT can occur in almost anyone. Some risk factors or triggering events to discuss with your doctor include, but are not limited to:

• Cancer
• Certain heart or respiratory diseases
• Prior DVT
• Advanced age
• Acute medical illness with restricted mobility
• Inherited or acquired predisposition to clotting
• Obesity
• Hospitalization
• Patients undergoing major surgery, such as joint replacements, who remain immobile in bed after an operation
• Pregnancy (Miscarriages can also be caused by clots in the umbilical cord)
• Restricted mobility caused by long-distance travel
• Use of birth control pills
• Postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy
• Trauma