5/23/2024
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a medical condition in which a blood clot or thrombus occurs in one or multiple deep veins. It is a common condition; nearly 300,000 to 600,000 people are affected yearly. While DVT is primarily seen in the legs, it may also form in your thigh, pelvis area, or arms.
Obesity is one of the risk factors that can increase the chances of developing DVT among both men and women. Studies show that obese individuals are at twice the risk of DVT, and obese people lower than 40 years of age are at a five-fold risk of DVT.
This blog explores the link between obesity and DVT, how weight loss helps with DVT, and discusses DVT’s symptoms, causes and risk factors, prevention, and treatment for obese patients.
If you are obese, you may be more vulnerable to developing blood clots and coagulations that can impact your blood flow, which subsequently may lead to DVT. Let’s see how.
Obesity may also result in venous stasis, in which the veins are unable to send blood from the legs to the heart, causing blood to pool in the lower legs. This condition triggers deep vein thrombosis.
As mentioned above, obese people are at a higher risk of developing DVT. However, with weight loss, you can significantly reduce your risks. Once you reach a healthy weight, your:
With proper and timely treatment, deep vein thrombosis is curable. If you undergo weight loss and maintain a healthy weight after that, it significantly reduces the risks of DVT’s:
If you are obese and have DVT, you may have the following symptoms:
However, in many cases, you can have deep vein thrombosis that does not cause any symptoms.
Causes:
Among obese patients, the leading causes of deep vein thrombosis are:
Risk Factors:
DVT risk factors due to obesity include:
The following tips have been found to prevent deep vein thrombosis among obese individuals. They include:
The treatments for deep vein thrombosis focus on preventing the clot from increasing in size or breaking into smaller fragments that can travel through your bloodstream and cause potential severe complications. Based on the severity and symptoms of your condition, your physician may recommend the following treatment options:
Medications: Blood thinner medications, also known as anticoagulants, allow blood to flow around a clot and prevent it from traveling to the lungs. They may also help dissolve the clot.
Non-Pharmacological Strategies: Graduated compression stockings, venous foot pumps, and intermittent compression devices ease the pain and swelling by preventing the blood from pooling and clotting.
Minimally Invasive Procedures: Inferior vena cava (IVC) filter: A small filter is implanted in the inferior vena cava, the large vein that returns blood to the heart, to boost blood circulation around a trapped blood clot and prevent its movement to the lungs.
Clot buster: Also known as DVT Thrombolysis, the procedure involves the insertion of a catheter into the leg through which clot-dissolving medications are provided to remove or reduce the clot.
If you experience swelling, pain, heaviness, and discoloration in your leg that intensifies when you sit for a longer time, you must consult a doctor as soon as possible. If you are obese, you are at a higher risk of having DVT and must visit a vascular specialist for an accurate diagnosis and treatment of your condition.
North Atlanta Vascular Clinic has provided exceptional vascular care in and around Suwanee/Johns Creek for more than ten years. Our vascular specialists have immense expertise and experience in offering you the highest standards of personalized expert DVT care. If you are looking for specialized care for DVT pain or symptom management, contact us today.
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