Have a condition that causes increased blood clotting. Have an injury or surgery that reduces blood flow to a body part. Have a central venous catheter. Are pregnant or have recently given birth. Are overweight or obese. Have varicose veins or vasculitis. Have cancer. Are a smoker.
Take birth control pills or receive hormone therapy, including for postmenopausal symptoms. How is DVT diagnosed? Can DVT be prevented or avoided? Get frequent exercise. If you are inactive for a long period of time, move your legs around. Get up every hour or so and walk around, if you can. If you must stay seated, do lower leg exercises. With your feet flat on the ground, alternate lifting your heels and toes. This stretches your calves and keeps up your blood flow. Stretch your legs and lightly massage your muscles.
Get out of bed and move around as soon as you can after being ill or having surgery. Control your blood pressure. Do not smoke. Lose weight if you are overweight. DVT treatment. The main goals of DVT treatment are to: Stop the clot from getting bigger. Prevent the clot from breaking off and traveling to your lungs.
Prevent future blood clots. Living with DVT. Questions to ask your doctor. What is the likely cause of my DVT? What is the best treatment for me? How long do I need to take anticoagulants? What are the side effects or risks? Can I drink alcohol or exercise while using anticoagulants? Are there any lifestyle changes I can make to reduce my risk of blood clots? If I have DVT once, what is my risk of having future blood clots? Is it safe for me to travel?
Does DVT increase my risk for other health problems? Last Updated: September 10, This article was contributed by: familydoctor. Related Articles. Whatever the underlying cause, these symptoms need to be medically evaluated immediately. Deep vein thrombosis DVT affects men and women of all ethnic and socioeconomic groups equally. Factors that can contribute to this condition are:. Anyone with confirmed deep vein thrombosis DVT is treated immediately to prevent pulmonary embolism.
Anticoagulant medications are given to reduce clotting or thrombolytics are given to dissolve the clot. Thrombolytics are usually used in only the most severe cases or those in which the clot occurs higher up in the thigh or in the pelvis.
The drug is delivered directly to the clot through a catheter inserted in a vein. Sometimes the softened clot is removed by a tiny vacuum cleaner-like device. Once the clot is gone, balloon angioplasty and stent placement may be performed. These are analogous to those performed on arteries see chronic limb ischemia.
If a person has a severe clot, but is not a good candidate for thrombolytics, the clot may be removed through an incision in the groin. Consumer Resource Center. To help providers determine when vascular specialty care is needed.
Toggle navigation Vascular Center. Deep vein thrombosis. If you have DVT, the blood clot in the vein of your calf can divert the flow of blood to other veins, causing an increase in pressure. This can affect the tissues of your calf and lead to symptoms, including:. When a DVT develops in your thigh vein, there's an increased risk of post-thrombotic syndrome occurring. It's also more likely to occur if you're overweight or if you've had more than one DVT in the same leg.
If you're admitted to hospital or planning to go into hospital for surgery, your risk of developing a blood clot while you're there will be assessed. Surgery and some medical treatments can increase your risk of developing DVT — see causes of DVT for more information. If you're thought to be at risk of developing DVT, your healthcare team can take a number of measures to prevent a blood clot forming.
If you're going into hospital to have an operation, and you're taking the combined contraceptive pill or hormone replacement therapy HRT , you'll be advised to temporarily stop taking your medication four weeks before your operation.
Similarly, if you're taking medication to prevent blood clots , such as aspirin , you may be advised to stop taking it one week before your operation. There's less risk of getting DVT when having a local anaesthetic compared with a general anaesthetic. Your doctor will discuss whether it's possible for you to have a local anaesthetic. There are a number of things your healthcare team can do to help reduce your risk of getting DVT while you're in hospital. For example, they'll make sure you have enough to drink so you don't become dehydrated , and they'll also encourage you to move around as soon as you're able to.
Depending on your risk factors and individual circumstances, a number of different medications can be used to help prevent DVT. For example:. Compression stockings or compression devices are also commonly used to help keep the blood in your legs circulating.
Compression stockings are worn around your feet, lower legs and thighs, and fit tightly to encourage your blood to flow more quickly around your body. Compression devices are inflatable and work in the same way as compression stockings, inflating at regular intervals to squeeze your legs and encourage blood flow.
Your healthcare team will usually advise you to walk regularly after you've been prescribed compression stockings. Keeping mobile can help prevent the symptoms of DVT returning and may help prevent or improve complications of DVT , such as post-thrombotic syndrome.
You may need to continue to take anticoagulant medicine and wear compression stockings when you leave hospital. Before you leave, your healthcare team should advise you about how to use your treatment, how long to continue using it for, and who to contact if you experience any problems. If you're planning a long-distance plane, train or car journey journeys of six hours or more , make sure you:. Read more about preventing DVT when you travel.
If you're travelling abroad, it's very important to ensure you're prepared should you or a family member fall ill. Make sure you have full travel insurance to cover the cost of any healthcare you may need while abroad.
This is particularly important if you have a pre-existing medical condition, such as cancer or heart disease , which may increase your risk of developing DVT. DVT can be a very serious condition, and it's important you receive medical assistance as soon as possible. Treating DVT promptly will help minimise the risk of complications.
Home Illnesses and conditions Blood and lymph Deep vein thrombosis. Deep vein thrombosis See all parts of this guide Hide guide parts 1. About deep vein thrombosis 2. Deep vein thrombosis causes 3. Deep vein thrombosis treatment 4. Complications of deep vein thrombosis 5. Deep vein thrombosis prevention.
About deep vein thrombosis Deep vein thrombosis DVT is a blood clot that develops within a deep vein in the body, usually in the leg. If symptoms do occur they can include: pain, swelling and tenderness in one of your legs usually your calf or thigh a heavy ache in the affected area warm skin in the area of the clot red skin, particularly at the back of your leg below the knee DVT usually although not always affects one leg.
A pulmonary embolism is a very serious condition which causes: breathlessness — which may come on gradually or suddenly chest pain — which may become worse when you breathe in sudden collapse Both DVT and pulmonary embolism need urgent investigation and treatment.
As well as age, there are also some other risk factors, including: having a history of DVT or pulmonary embolism having a family history of blood clots being inactive for long periods — such as after an operation or during a long journey blood vessel damage — a damaged blood vessel wall can result in the formation of a blood clot having certain conditions or treatments that cause your blood to clot more easily than normal — such as cancer including chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment , heart and lung disease, thrombophilia and Hughes syndrome being pregnant — your blood also clots more easily during pregnancy being overweight or obese The combined contraceptive pill and hormone replacement therapy HRT both contain the female hormone oestrogen, which causes the blood to clot more easily.
D-dimer test It can be difficult to diagnose DVT from symptoms alone. Ultrasound scan An ultrasound scan can be used to detect clots in your veins. Venogram A venogram may be used if the results of a D-dimer test and ultrasound scan can't confirm a diagnosis of DVT. Read more about treating DVT DVT prevention If you need to go into hospital for surgery, a member of your care team will assess your risk of developing a blood clot while you're there.
These may include: not smoking eating a healthy, balanced diet taking regular exercise maintaining a healthy weight or losing weight if you're obese There's no evidence to suggest that taking aspirin reduces your risk of developing DVT. Deep vein thrombosis causes Deep vein thrombosis DVT sometimes occurs for no apparent reason.
However, the risk of developing DVT is increased in certain circumstances. Inactivity When you're inactive your blood tends to collect in the lower parts of your body, often in your lower legs.
In hospital If you have to go into hospital for an operation or procedure, your risk of getting a blood clot increases. You may be at increased risk of DVT if any of the following apply: you're having an operation that takes longer than 90 minutes, or 60 minutes if the operation is on your leg, hip or abdomen you're having an operation for an inflammatory or abdominal condition, such as appendicitis you're confined to a bed, unable to walk, or spending a large part of the day in a bed or chair for at least three days You may also be at increased risk of DVT if you're much less active than usual because of an operation or serious injury and have other DVT risk factors, such as a family history of the condition.
Blood vessel damage If the wall of a blood vessel is damaged, it may become narrowed or blocked, which can cause a blood clot to form. Medical and genetic conditions Your risk of getting DVT is increased if you have a condition that causes your blood to clot more easily than normal. These conditions include: cancer — cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy can increase this risk further heart disease and lung disease infectious conditions, such as hepatitis inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis thrombophilia — a genetic condition where your blood has an increased tendency to clot antiphospholipid syndrome — an immune system disorder that causes an increased risk of blood clots Pregnancy During pregnancy, blood clots more easily.
Other risk factors during pregnancy include: being over 35 years old being obese with a BMI of 30 or more expecting 2 or more babies having recently had a caesarean section being immobile for long periods of time smoking find out how to stop smoking having severe varicose veins dehydration Low molecular weight heparin LMWH is usually used to treat pregnant women with DVT. Contraceptive pill and HRT The combined contraceptive pill and hormone replacement therapy HRT both contain the female hormone oestrogen.
Other causes Your risk of getting DVT is also increased if you or a close relative have previously had DVT and: you're overweight or obese you smoke you're dehydrated you're over 60 — particularly if you have a condition that restricts your mobility.
Deep vein thrombosis treatment If you have deep vein thrombosis DVT , you'll need to take a medicine called an anticoagulant. Anticoagulation Anticoagulant medicines prevent blood clots getting bigger.
Heparin Heparin is available in 2 different forms: standard unfractioned heparin low molecular weight heparin LMWH Standard unfractioned heparin can be given as: an intravenous injection — an injection straight into one of your veins an intravenous infusion — where a continuous drip of heparin via a pump is fed through a narrow tube into a vein in your arm this must be done in hospital a subcutaneous injection — an injection under your skin LMWH is usually given as a subcutaneous injection.
Both standard heparin and LMWH can cause side effects, including: a skin rash and other allergic reactions bleeding weakening of the bones if taken for a long time although rare with LMWH In rare cases, heparin can also cause an extreme reaction that makes existing blood clots worse and causes new clots to develop.
In most cases, you'll be given LMWH because it's easier to use and causes fewer side effects. Warfarin Warfarin is taken as a tablet. If you're taking warfarin you should: keep your diet consistent limit the amount of alcohol you drink no more than 14 units of alcohol a week take your dose of warfarin at the same time every day not start to take any other medicine without checking with your GP, pharmacist or anticoagulant specialist not take herbal medicines Warfarin isn't recommended for pregnant women who are given heparin injections for the full length of treatment.
Treatment usually lasts at least 3 months and involves taking apixaban twice a day. Read the NICE guidance about apixaban Compression stockings Wearing compression stockings helps prevent calf pain and swelling, and lowers the risk of ulcers developing after having DVT. Exercise Your healthcare team will usually advise you to walk regularly once compression stockings have been prescribed. Raising your leg As well as wearing compression stockings, you might be advised to raise your leg whenever you're resting.
Read more about preventing DVT Inferior vena cava filters Although anticoagulant medicines and compression stockings are usually the only treatments needed for DVT, inferior vena cava IVC filters may be used as an alternative. They can be used to help prevent blood clots developing in the legs of people diagnosed with: DVT pulmonary embolism multiple severe injuries IVCs can be placed in the vein permanently, or newer types of filters can be placed temporarily and removed after the risk of a blood clot has decreased.
Complications of deep vein thrombosis The two main complications of deep vein thrombosis DVT are pulmonary embolism and post-thrombotic syndrome. Pulmonary embolism A pulmonary embolism is the most serious complication of DVT. About one in 10 people with an untreated DVT develops a severe pulmonary embolism. Post-thrombotic syndrome If you've had a DVT, you may develop long-term symptoms in your calf known as post-thrombotic syndrome.
This can affect the tissues of your calf and lead to symptoms, including: calf pain swelling a rash ulcers on the calf in severe cases When a DVT develops in your thigh vein, there's an increased risk of post-thrombotic syndrome occurring. Deep vein thrombosis prevention If you're admitted to hospital or planning to go into hospital for surgery, your risk of developing a blood clot while you're there will be assessed. Before going into hospital If you're going into hospital to have an operation, and you're taking the combined contraceptive pill or hormone replacement therapy HRT , you'll be advised to temporarily stop taking your medication four weeks before your operation.
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