How Do You Know if You Have a Blood Clot in Lower Leg

Overview

What is deep vein thrombosis?

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT, also called venous thrombosis) is a blood clot that develops in a vein deep in the body. The clot may partially or completely block blood flow through the vein. About DVTs occur in the lower leg, thigh or pelvis, although they as well can occur in other parts of the body including the arm, encephalon, intestines, liver or kidney.

What is the danger of DVT?

Even though DVT itself is non life-threatening, the blood clot has the potential to intermission costless and travel through the bloodstream, where it can become lodged in the blood vessels of the lung (known as a pulmonary embolism). This tin be a life- threatening condition. Therefore, prompt diagnosis and treatment are necessary.

DVT tin can also atomic number 82 to complications in the legs referred to as chronic venous insufficiency or the mail-thrombotic syndrome. This condition is characterized past pooling of claret, chronic leg swelling, increased force per unit area, increased pigmentation or discoloration of the peel, and leg ulcers known equally venous stasis ulcers.

What is the departure between DVT and a superficial venous thrombosis?

A superficial venous thrombosis (too called phlebitis or superficial thrombophlebitis) is a blood jell that develops in a vein close to the surface of the skin. These types of blood clots do not usually travel to the lungs unless they move from the superficial arrangement into the deep venous organisation first.

Symptoms and Causes

What are the symptoms of DVT?

A DVT usually forms in one leg or 1 arm. Non everyone with a DVT volition take symptoms, but symptoms can include:

Swelling of the leg or arm (sometimes this happens suddenly)
Pain or tenderness in the leg (may but happen when continuing or walking)
The expanse of the leg or arm that is bloated or hurts may be warmer than usual
Skin that is red or discolored
The veins near the skin'south surface may be larger than normal

Symptoms of a pulmonary embolism include:

Sudden shortness of breath or fast breathing
Sharp chest hurting that often comes with coughing or movement
Pain in the dorsum
Cough (sometimes with bloody sputum/phlegm)
Sweating more than normal
Fast heartbeat
Feeling silly or fainting

Some people practise not know they have a DVT until the clot moves from their leg or arm and travels to their lung.

It is important to call your doctor correct away or go to the emergency room if you accept symptoms of a pulmonary embolism or DVT. Exercise not wait to see if the symptoms "become abroad." Become handling right away to foreclose serious complications.

What causes a DVT?

The following conditions can increase your take a chance of a DVT:

An inherited (genetic) condition that increases your risk of blood clots
Cancer and some of its treatments (chemotherapy)
Limited claret flow in a deep vein, due to injury, surgery, or immobilization
Long periods of inactivity that subtract blood flow, such as:
- Sitting for a long period of time on trips in a car, truck, bus, train or aeroplane
- Immobility after surgery or a serious injury
Pregnancy and the first 6 weeks afterward giving nascency
Being over age 40 (although a DVT can bear on people of any age)
Being overweight
Taking birth control pills or hormone therapy
Having a central venous catheter or pacemaker

Diagnosis and Tests

How is DVT diagnosed?

An appointment to detect out if you have a DVT includes an exam and review of your medical history. You lot will also demand testing. Mutual tests to diagnose a DVT are:

A duplex venous ultrasound. This is the most common exam used to diagnose a DVT. It shows the blood period in the veins and whatsoever blood clots that exist. An ultrasound technician will employ force per unit area while scanning your arm or leg. If the pressure level does not cause the vein to compress, information technology could mean there is a blood clot.

Venography. This test uses X-rays to show your deep veins. A special dye (contrast material) is injected into your veins so the 10-rays show the veins and whatsoever blood clots. Whatsoever blockage in blood flow may also be seen. Venography may be used if the results of the duplex ultrasound aren't clear.

Other tests you may have include:

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or Magnetic Resonance Venography (MRV): MRI shows pictures of organs and structures inside the body, and MRV shows pictures of the blood vessels in the trunk. In many cases, MRI and MRV tin offer more information than an X-ray.
Computed tomography (CT) scan is a type of X-ray that shows structures inside the torso. A CT browse may be used to detect a DVT in the belly or pelvis, as well as blood clots in the lung (pulmonary embolism).

If your doctor thinks y'all may accept a genetic disorder that causes blood clots, you may demand blood tests. This may be important if:

You have a history of blood clots that cannot exist linked to whatsoever other crusade
You have a blood clot in an unusual location, such every bit in a vein from the intestines, liver, kidney or encephalon
You have a strong family history of blood clots

Management and Treatment

Activity Guidelines

A DVT may brand it harder for you lot to get around at beginning. Yous should slowly return to your normal activities. If your legs feel swollen or heavy, lie in bed with your heels propped upward virtually v to 6 inches. This helps improve circulation and decreases swelling.

In addition:

Exercise your lower leg muscles if you are sitting still for long periods of time.
Stand and walk for a few minutes every hr while awake.
Don't wear tight-fitting clothing that could decrease the circulation in your legs.
Vesture pinch stockings equally recommended past your doc.
Avert activities that may crusade a serious injury.

What treatments are bachelor for patients with a DVT?

Patients with a DVT may need to exist treated in the hospital. Others may be able to have outpatient treatment.

Treatments include medications, compression stockings and elevating the afflicted leg. If the blood clot is all-encompassing, you may demand more invasive testing and treatment. The chief goals of treatment are to:

Terminate the clot from getting bigger
Prevent the clot from breaking off in your vein and moving to your lungs
Reduce the risk of another blood jell
Prevent long-term complications from the claret clot (chronic venous insufficiency).

Medications

Important Data Nearly Medications

Take your medications exactly every bit your doctor tells you to.
Take blood tests as directed by your doctor and keep all scheduled laboratory appointments.
Do non stop or showtime taking any medication (including nonprescription/over-the-counter medications and supplements) without asking your dr..
Talk to your md about your diet. You may need to make changes, depending on the medication y'all have.

Handling for a DVT tin can include:

Anticoagulants ("blood thinners"). This blazon of medication makes it harder for your blood to jell. Anticoagulants as well end clots from getting bigger and foreclose blood clots from moving. Anticoagulants do non destroy clots. Your body may naturally dissolve a jell, merely sometimes clots exercise not completely disappear.

At that place are dissimilar types of anticoagulants. Your physician will talk to you about the all-time type of medication for you.

If you need to take an anticoagulant, you may just demand to accept it for three to 6 months. Simply, your treatment time may be different if:

You lot have had clots before, your treatment fourth dimension may be longer.
Yous are being treated for another illness (such as cancer), you may demand to accept an anticoagulant as long as your risk of a clot is college.

The about mutual side effect of anticoagulants is haemorrhage. You should call your md right away if you observe that you lot trample or bleed hands while taking this medication.

Pinch Stockings

You will likely need to wear graduated pinch stockings to get rid of leg swelling. The swelling is ofttimes because the valves in the leg veins are damaged or the vein is blocked by the DVT.Most pinch stockings are worn just beneath the knee. These stockings are tight at the ankle and get more than loose as they become up the leg. This causes gentle force per unit area (compression) on your leg.

DVT Treatment Procedures

Vena cava filters are used when you cannot accept medications to sparse your claret or if you have blood clots while taking this type of medication. The filter prevents blood clots from moving from the vein in your legs to the lung (pulmonary embolism). The filter is put in identify during modest surgery. It is inserted through a catheter into a large vein in the groin or neck, so into the vena cava (the largest vein in the body). One time in place, the filter catches clots equally they move through the body. This treatment helps prevent a pulmonary embolism, but does not forbid the formation of more than clots.

Vena Cava Filters

Prevention

Can a DVT be prevented?

After you take a DVT, yous volition need to reduce your risk of future clots by:

Taking your medications exactly as your doctor tells you lot to.
Keeping your follow-upward appointments with your doctor and the laboratory. These are needed to see how well your handling is working.

If you take never had a DVT , but accept an increased chance of developing one, be sure to:

Exercise your lower leg muscles if you lot need to sit yet for a long time. Stand up and walk at to the lowest degree every half hour if you are on a long flight. Or leave of the motorcar every hour if you are on a long road trip.
Go out of bed and motion around every bit soon as you tin can later you are ill or accept surgery. The sooner you move effectually, the less chance you have of developing a clot.
Take medications or use compression stockings after surgery (if prescribed by your doctor) to reduce your risk of a clot.
Follow-up with your doc as directed to and follow your doctor's recommendations to reduce your risk of a jell.

Resource

Doctors vary in quality due to differences in preparation and experience; hospitals differ in the number of services available. The more complex your medical problem, the greater these differences in quality become and the more they matter.

Clearly, the doc and hospital that you choose for complex, specialized medical care volition have a directly bear upon on how well you exercise. To assistance yous make this choice, please review our Miller Family Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute Outcomes.

Cleveland Clinic Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute Vascular Medicine Specialists and Surgeons

Choosing a doctor to treat your vascular disease depends on where you are in your diagnosis and handling. The post-obit Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute Sections and Departments care for patients with all types of vascular illness, including blood clotting disorders:

Section of Vascular Medicine: for evaluation, medical management or interventional procedures to care for vascular disease. In addition, the Non-Invasive Laboratory includes state-of-the art computerized imaging equipment to help in diagnosing vascular disease, without added discomfort to the patient. Phone call Vascular Medicine Appointments, toll-free 800-223-2273, extension 44420 or request an appointment online.

Department of Vascular Surgery: surgery evaluation for surgical treatment of vascular disease, including aorta, peripheral artery, and venous affliction. Phone call Vascular Surgery Appointments, price-gratuitous 800-223-2273, extension 44508 or request an appointment online.

You may also use our MyConsult second opinion consultation using the Internet.

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Learn more about experts who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of vascular and arterial affliction.

Encounter About Us to learn more virtually the Sydell and Arnold Miller Family unit Centre, Vascular & Thoracic Institute.

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Source: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/16911-deep-vein-thrombosis-dvt