Deep vein thrombosis - treatment 
🏻:woman_health_worker:t3:
DVT is a serious medical condition. Tell your doctor right away if you think you’re experiencing symptoms of DVT or go to the closest emergency room. A healthcare provider can check out your symptoms.
DVT treatments focus on keeping the clot from growing. In addition, treatment may help prevent a pulmonary embolism and lower your risk of having more clots.
Medication
Your doctor might prescribe medications that thin your blood, like heparin, warfarin (Coumadin), enoxaparin (Lovenox), or fondaparinux (Arixtra). This makes it harder for your blood to clot. It also keeps existing clots as small as possible and decreases the chance that you’ll develop more clots.
If blood thinners don’t work, or if you have a severe case of DVT, your doctor might use thrombolytic drugs. People with upper extremity DVT may also benefit from this medication.
Thrombolytic drugs work by breaking up clots. You’ll receive these intravenously. Read more about these drugs and how they can help prevent and destroy blood clots.
Compression stockings
If you’re at high risk for DVT, wearing compression stockings can prevent swelling and might lower your chance of developing clots.
Compression stockings reach just below your knee or right above it. Your doctor may recommend you wear these every day.
Filters
You might need to have a filter put inside the large abdominal vein called the vena cava if you aren’t able to take blood thinners. This form of treatment helps prevent pulmonary embolisms by stopping clots from entering your lungs.
But filters do have risks. If they’re left in for too long, they can actually cause DVT. Filters should be used for a short-term period, until the risk of thromboembolism is reduced and blood thinning medications can be used.
DVT surgery
Your doctor may suggest surgery to remove a DVT clot in your arm or leg. This is typically only recommended in the case of very large blood clots or clots that are causing serious issues, like tissue damage.
During a surgical thrombectomy, or surgery to remove a blood clot, your surgeon will make an incision into a blood vessel. They’ll locate and remove the clot. Then, they’ll repair the blood vessel and tissue.
In some cases, they may use a small inflating balloon to keep the blood vessel open while they remove the clot. When the clot is found and removed, the balloon is removed with it.
Surgery isn’t without risks, so many doctors will only use this treatment in severe cases. Risks include infection, damage to the blood vessel, and excess bleeding.🏻:woman_health_worker:t3:
DVT is a serious medical condition. Tell your doctor right away if you think you’re experiencing symptoms of DVT or go to the closest emergency room. A healthcare provider can check out your symptoms.
DVT treatments focus on keeping the clot from growing. In addition, treatment may help prevent a pulmonary embolism and lower your risk of having more clots.
Medication
Your doctor might prescribe medications that thin your blood, like heparin, warfarin (Coumadin), enoxaparin (Lovenox), or fondaparinux (Arixtra). This makes it harder for your blood to clot. It also keeps existing clots as small as possible and decreases the chance that you’ll develop more clots.
If blood thinners don’t work, or if you have a severe case of DVT, your doctor might use thrombolytic drugs. People with upper extremity DVT may also benefit from this medication.
Thrombolytic drugs work by breaking up clots. You’ll receive these intravenously. Read more about these drugs and how they can help prevent and destroy blood clots.
Compression stockings
If you’re at high risk for DVT, wearing compression stockings can prevent swelling and might lower your chance of developing clots.
Compression stockings reach just below your knee or right above it. Your doctor may recommend you wear these every day.
Filters
You might need to have a filter put inside the large abdominal vein called the vena cava if you aren’t able to take blood thinners. This form of treatment helps prevent pulmonary embolisms by stopping clots from entering your lungs.
But filters do have risks. If they’re left in for too long, they can actually cause DVT. Filters should be used for a short-term period, until the risk of thromboembolism is reduced and blood thinning medications can be used.
DVT surgery
Your doctor may suggest surgery to remove a DVT clot in your arm or leg. This is typically only recommended in the case of very large blood clots or clots that are causing serious issues, like tissue damage.
During a surgical thrombectomy, or surgery to remove a blood clot, your surgeon will make an incision into a blood vessel. They’ll locate and remove the clot. Then, they’ll repair the blood vessel and tissue.
In some cases, they may use a small inflating balloon to keep the blood vessel open while they remove the clot. When the clot is found and removed, the balloon is removed with it.
Surgery isn’t without risks, so many doctors will only use this treatment in severe cases. Risks include infection, damage to the blood vessel, and excess bleeding.