Taking anticoagulants (blood thinners) safely.

Propping up (elevating) your leg or arm.

Your doctor may also recommend self-care to relieve symptoms. They might be used for people who are at risk for serious problems from DVT. These treatments include thrombolytic medicine, a procedure to remove the blood clot (thrombectomy), and vena cava filters. Other treatments may be used in the hospital for some people. The length of time will vary based on your own health and your risk for a pulmonary embolism. You might take anticoagulants for at least 3 months. They also help prevent existing blood clots from becoming larger. They prevent blood clots by increasing the time it takes a blood clot to form. These medicines are often called blood thinners, but they don't actually thin the blood. Blood thinnersĭVT is usually treated with anticoagulant medicines. Treatment includes medicine and self-care.

To prevent blood clots from coming back.

This is a condition that can cause pain, sores, and swelling of the affected leg.

To prevent the blood clot from travelling to the lungs (pulmonary embolism).

To prevent the blood clot from getting larger.

Blood thinners also may be used if you are likely to develop clots. Take blood-thinning medicines after some types of surgery if your doctor recommends it.On long airplane flights, walk up and down the aisle hourly, and flex and point your feet every 20 minutes while sitting. Take breaks when you are on long trips.Many doctors recommend that you wear compression stockings during a journey longer than 8 hours.

These stockings are tight at the feet with a gradually looser fit on the leg. Use special stockings called compression stockings.If you need to stay in bed, do the leg exercise noted above every hour when you are awake. Get out of bed as soon as you can after an illness or surgery.This is a good exercise to do when you are sitting for long periods of time. Point your toes up toward your head so the calves of your legs are stretched, then relax and repeat. Exercise your lower leg muscles to help blood flow in your legs.You may try leg exercises that can help blood flow. After an illness or surgery, you can try to get up and out of bed often. To help prevent DVT, you might take an anticoagulant medicine. At home, you can take walks and you can prop up or elevate your leg or arm. How long you take them depends on your health, where the blood clot is, and your risk for a pulmonary embolism. Treatment for DVT usually involves taking blood thinners (anticoagulants) for at least 3 months. You will also have a physical examination, and the doctor will ask you questions about your past health. If your doctor thinks that you have DVT, you probably will have an ultrasound test to measure the blood flow through your veins and help find any clots that might be blocking the flow. If a blood clot is small, it may not cause symptoms. Pain may get worse and last longer or become constant. The calf or thigh may ache or feel tender. The leg or arm may swell, feel warm, or look red. Symptoms of DVT include swelling of the affected leg or arm. Surgery or an injury to the blood vessels can also cause a blood clot. What causes it?Ĭauses of a blood clot in a deep vein (DVT) include slowed blood flow, which can happen when you're not active for long periods of time, and abnormal clotting problems, which make the blood clot too easily or too quickly. Diagnosis and treatment of DVT in other parts of the body are similar. It may damage the vein and cause the area near the clot to ache, swell, and change colour.īlood clots most often form in the calf and thigh veins, and less often in the arm veins or pelvic veins. DVT can also lead to long-lasting problems. Pulmonary embolism is often life-threatening. These clots are dangerous because they can break loose, travel through the bloodstream to the lungs, and block blood flow in the lungs (pulmonary embolism). These clots require medical care right away. Condition Basics What is deep vein thrombosis (DVT)?ĭeep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a blood clot (thrombus) in a deep vein, usually in the legs.

Deep vein thrombosis arm