Blood Clot Symptoms
What is Blood Clot?
Coagulation is a process through which blood clots are produced. Natural trend of blood is to cluster and plug injured vessels of blood. Blood clots are made up of fibrin stands and blood cells. There function is to stop the blood flow at the time of any injury. Blood clot forms the protective scab over the vessels of blood. If body is unable to form blood clot then minor cut also cause death.
Some of the time blood clots are formed when person does not get injured. Blood clots get dissolve as their own. They become dangerous when flow of blood from vein or artery is blocked by them.
When the flow of blood from artery in brain or heart gets blocked then heart attack or stroke happened. Veins and arteries can also block by blood clots which causes the diseases. Many methods are used by physicians to treat the blood clot. Anticoagulants and clot busters are used for curing the blood clot.
A blood clot may be dangerous to health when following situation may occur:
- The pulmonary artery travels from heart to the lungs. If this artery gets blocked then the situation is called as pulmonary embolism and this causes damage of lung and death in some cases.
- Coronary arteries placed on the heart surface and provide fresh oxygen rich blood to the muscles of the heart. So blockage of any of there artery causes heart attack.
- The carotid arteries which placed in the supply oxygen rich blood to the brain. So stroke or mini-stroke may occur if that artery gets blocked.
- If the femoral artery which is present in the leg gets blocked, then it causes pain and weaknesses. If proper treatment is not taken causes death of tissues and infection.
- Atherosclerosis
- Heart attack or stroke
- Valvular heart disease
- Infection
- Autoimmune disorders (e.g., lupus or rheumatoid arthritis)
- Bleeding disorders (e.g., hemophilia)
- Heart failure
- Cancer
- Inflammatory bowel disease (e.g., ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease)
- Pregnancy
- History of varicose veins or other vascular conditions
- Thrombocythemia (in which greater numbers of platelets are produced)
- Atrial fibrillation
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Smoking
- Obesity (body mass index greater than 30)
- Elevated levels of homocysteine (homocysteinemia), which may be treated with diet and folic acid supplements
- Prolonged lack of exercise
- Genetic factors (e.g., inheriting a tendency to develop deep vein thrombosis)
- Use of contraceptive pill or patch
- Hypercoagulable state, where genetic (e.g., Factor V Leiden) or acquired (e.g., trauma, pregnancy, Heart failure) factors affect blood clotting due to abnormal levels of blood-clotting proteins
- Advanced age
- Sitting or laying in one position for a prolonged period of time
- Having a mechanical heart valve
Blood Clot Symptoms and signs:
Blood clot symptoms are depends on location of occurrence of blood clot as listed below:
- Lung - Symptoms includes sharp pains occur in chest; blood-tinged coughing, heart rate becomes very fast called as tachycardia, shortness of the breath called as dyspnea and the fever of low-grade.
- Arm or Leg - If the blood clot occurs in an artery, it may cause swelling, sudden pain, and a small blue coloration. If it occurs in vein, then it may cause tenderness and swelling.
- Brain - Symptoms like weakness, visual disturbances, seizure and speech impairment.
- Heart - Symptom like chest pain which direct to heart attack. If blood clot is occur in heart then it may move to any part or artery of the body. Conditions for forming the blood clot in heart such as valvular disease of heart, atherosclerosis, past heart attack, atrial fibrillation, enlarged heart, and the heart failure.
- Abdomen - Symptoms includes vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
- swelling of the affected leg
- reddening of the affected leg
- pain in the affected leg
Diagnosis for blood clots symptoms:
Medical history and physical tests are required for analysis of blood clot. If blood clot symptoms are identify in patient then physical tests are useful for confirmation. These tests include the following:
- Doppler ultrasound - This technology uses sound waves and motion waves. These waves take image of different organs and blood vessels in entire body.
- Computed Axial Tomography scan (CAT scan) - This test includes sequence of x-ray tests which are taken from different angles. This creates 3D image of structure of the body.
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): Magnetic fields are used to produce cross sectional, high resolution or three dimensional images of the body. Magnetic Resonance Imaging is done after taking injection to see the flow of blood from arteries.
Treatment on Blood Clot:
The treatment depends on location of occurrence that whether the blood clot formed in artery or in vein. In case of emergency, medicine named thrombolytic is given to melt the blood clot. These medicines must be given carefully such that it may be given within 1 hour of heart attack or 3 hours of the stroke.
Some of the procedures are optional. The procedure named catheter-directed thrombolysis used in which thrombolytic is delivers to the blood clot directly with the help of a catheter. Thrombolytic treatment is generally used to stop the creation of new blood clot.
If blood clot appears in the leg vein, there is danger of creation of pulmonary embolism. Pulmonary embolism is very harmful event which breaks the blood clot from its location, moves through bloodstream and stops in any blood vessel of the lungs. This is treated with the mixture of heat, thrombolytics,, painkilling medications, elevation and anticoagulants. This depends on size and blood clot symptoms.
Device named as "Vena cava filter" is used for the treatment. But some danger connected with that device such as breakdown of the filter. It is proved by the study that long term therapy with the low dose of drugs stops the creation of blood clots.
