The Dangers of Blood Clots

At OVEC we’re often asked about dangerous blood clots in the legs, you know, the kind that can travel to the lungs and be a major threat to health and even to one’s life. And since this is national DVT Awareness Month, we thought it a good moment to chat a bit about blood clot, or “DVTs”.

 Patients often seem to have an intuitive understanding that with varicose veins the blood isn’t circulating properly, and then when that happens, one is more likely to form a blood clot.

Now it is true that certain inherited conditions make the blood more “clotty”, as do certain medications commonly in use today like birth control pills, menopausal hormones, and the IUD. But these altogether account for only a small part of the problem By far the commonest cause of blood clots is abnormal flow (blood pooling in the veins) and an abnormal vein valves and wall. What makes the vein valves and walls abnormal is the degenerative process we call “inflammation”. Inflammation gradually makes the structures of the vein succumb to the wear and tear of everyday blood vessel stresses and the forces of blood movement, and eventually when valves fail you have varicose veins, spider veins, and the possibility of blood clots.

Let me illustrate things this way: as everyone knows, blood in a stationary, non-moving test tube when laid on the table will clot almost instantly, because blood clots when it is pooling. But pooling, or stagnating, non-moving blood describes precisely what happens when one has varicose veins. The blood will not move properly because of the failed valves and pressure buildup, and then a potentially dangerous blood clot may follow.

Take no chances with this. If your legs are hurting, throbbing, aching, itching, or even jut restless, they are telling you something is wrong. Don’t wait until something bad happens. Don’t wait until a blood clot forces things in a certain direction you don’t want to go in.

 Give us a call at OVEC. Come for an ultrasound so we can ensure there are no blood clots, but then also see if you are a good candidate for our advanced, patient-friendly vein therapies.

Dr. Dominic Pedulla