When you don’t have enough blood in the body, you become more prone to many different kinds of disease and some can be life threatening.
There are times when the blood clots like when you cut yourself. The blood makes a gel like texture to prevent too much blood from leaving the body.
Not all blood clots are good in the body. There are times when the blood clots deep into the veins, without any injury or cut. This is called deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
Many factors could lead to DVT in an individual. Most common among these include smoking, obesity, pregnancy, heart and lung disease, cancer (especially of the brain, bone, pancreas, ovaries and lymphomas), chemotherapy, hormone therapy (such as being on birth control pills), and inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Immobility is one of the leading causes of DVT, and usually occurs after a person has had major surgery or an accident that renders him or her unable to move freely.
Genetics also play a huge role in determining whether a person is prone to developing DVT. However, in some cases, DVT can occur for no apparent reason.
DVT can be an extremely dangerous and potentially life-threatening condition. The clots in your veins can break away, find their way to the lungs and lodge themselves in there, blocking the blood flow.
When there is a blood clot in the lungs this is call pulmonary embolism, which is need serious medical attention.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that around 60,000 to 100,000 American find out they have DVT or PE each year.
Even though DVT is asymptomatic, some people do see symptoms from it, which others should know about. By knowing the symptoms you can prevent serious illness and death.
These symptoms may not mean you have DVT but if you notice them, its best to get them checked out by a doctor just to make sure.
Here are 10 signs and symptoms of an unnatural blood clot that you should know.
1. Swelling
Swelling, especially in the leg(s) and often called leg edema, is one of the primary and classic symptoms of DVT.
You may notice a significance difference in the appearance and feel of one leg compared to the other. You may feel like there is fluid buildup in your leg as you stand up and begin to walk.
Although a swollen leg could mean many things, when combined with the risk factors of DVT along with its other symptoms, you have reason enough to suspect DVT and seek appropriate medical attention.
Leg edema was identified as one of the most common and significant symptoms of DVT in the leg, according to a 2009 study published in the European Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Biology.
Hence, an unnatural swelling of the leg is not always a reaction to an intense workout session likely to resolve itself, but could be indicative of a blood clot.
2. Pain & Tenderness
Swelling many be linked to DVT when its accompanied with pain, and leg pain and tenderness tend to always happen when a person is dealing with DVT .
Leg pain is one of the most common symptoms of DVT, stated a study that was performed in 2000 and was published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
You might feel a sharp or burning sensation for different reason and it can appear just about anywhere on your leg.
DVT associated with leg pain tends to affect the calf region, and or the middle of the thigh on the outsides.
Around 50 to 70 percent of people who are suffering with DVT who see the symptoms usually always feel pain. DVT suffers tend to feel the most amount of pain when they are walking because it puts more pressure on the blood clot.
People who notice this pain tend to take breaks while they are walking and for some people the pain will come back as soon as they continue walking.
If you feel any pain while you are walking, take a break and feel the pain again when begin to walk again its best to see a doctor. Another way you can see if you are having a problem is by squeezing your calf and begins to feel a sharp pain.
A person that is suffering with DVT will also feel pain when they put their feet in a straight postion while they are sitting and pull their toes with their hands. This is called the Homan’s Test for DVT.
3. Unusual Warmth
A person who has a DVT blood clot in their leg may feel an unusual warmth in the area where the clot has developed. This is usually accompanied by other symptoms, such as swelling and pain, but can exist without either symptom as well. However, it is most likely to be warm and tender upon touching.
Each time you experience pain after walking, and you are stopping and/or sitting down to take a break, run your hand over the area from which you feel the pain is emanating.
If it is warm, you should consider it your body’s distress signal and seek immediate medical attention.
4. Skin Discoloration
If you have DVT, you may notice a certain part of your leg assuming an unusual color or, as is the most common case, becoming blue or red in color. This is likely due to a blood clot developing under the discolored area.
Since a blood clot is, essentially, a trauma to the vein, it causes inflammation of the vein, manifesting itself via a visible discoloration on the skin’s surface. This irritated part of the skin may or may not become flaky and excessively dry, causing an itching problem.
Should this happen, you are advised to NOT scratch the area incessantly, as it could further aggravate the skin as well as the underlying blood clot.
This discolored area may be swollen, painful, tender and warm. Thus, skin discoloration will occur with all, or the majority of, the symptoms described above.
5. Weakness
A person who is suffering with DVT might feel weakness in their quadriceps which is located in the middle of the thighs. It might feel as if they can hold their own body weight.
Dizziness and mental weakness usually come with this feeling. This feeling may occur after resting for a little or when consuming a lot of fluids.
This is not one of the main symptoms that occur with DVT, but it does happen to a lot of patients and everyone should know about it.
The following symptoms represent an advanced stage of DVT and the onset of pulmonary embolism (PE), a condition in which the blood clot in the leg detaches itself, travels to the lungs and blocks blood flow. PE is potentially fatal.
6. Fever
A low-grade fever is a symptom of DVT that has progressed to an advanced stage. In fact, a fever is a common symptom and may indicate serious outcomes, according to a 2011 study published in the Journal of Thrombosis and Thrombolysis.
In the majority of the cases, it may indicate that the blood clot has travelled to your lungs and settled therein, thereby signaling a blockage and causing a PE.
7. Shortness of Breath
This is also a very alarming symptom that happens to people who have had DVT for a while and indicates pulmonary embolism.
Shortness of breath is another main symptom and means that there is a blood clot in the lungs; this does not just affect the blood flow getting to the lungs it also restricts you from breathing normally, which will result in obstructed breathing.
Dyspnea is the main symptom for PE, as the majority of people that suffer PE have experienced this.
The breathing might be abnormally quick as well.
8. Chest Pain
When a person’s lungs are blocked due to the settling of a blood clot in the lungs, they suffer extreme strain when trying to breath, often resulting in a sharp chest pain.
A majority of patients with advanced DVT and PE are likely to report chest pain, according to a 2013 study published in Experimental and Clinical Cardiology.
9. Coughing
Coughing is also an accompanying symptom of advanced DVT and PE-associated shortness of breath.
It is indicative of the obstruction caused by a blood clot that has travelled to the lungs, making breathing impossible and manifesting the irritation through incessant coughing.
Such coughing may or may not be accompanied by blood.
10. Extreme Sweating
A person who has had DVT for a while and possibly PE will experience a great amount of sweating along with many of the symptoms above. They might feel lightheaded and may even pass out.
Night sweats are common with people who have PE, and can help figure out if you have PE early, stated in the Case Reports in Pulmonology.
A blood clot in a leg can travel up to person’s lungs; can get the brain and even the heart which can cause a heart attack or even a stroke.
Therefore, if you notice any of the above symptoms at any point of your life, it is best to get it properly diagnosed
source: healthyandnaturalhouse
