Blood Clots: Your Body's Built-In Bandage
Once a clot forms, it stays in your blood for years.
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Once a clot forms, it stays in your blood for years.
After a clot has done its job, your body breaks it down. The fibers dissolve, and the cells are absorbed back into your bloodstream. Usually it takes several weeks, but it could be months or longer. Any leftover clot will become scar tissue.
What’s more likely to cause a problem blood clot?
Pregnancy
Heavy lifting
Being on your feet all day
What’s more likely to cause a problem blood clot?
Pregnant women's bodies form blood clots more easily. That protects them from bleeding problems during childbirth until a few months afterward. But it also means their blood is more likely to clot in the veins of their legs and pelvis.
What tells your body to make a clot?
Temperature changes
Blood pressure changes
Chemical signals
What tells your body to make a clot?
When your tissue is damaged, a chemical gets released into your bloodstream, and it acts as a distress call to start the process. Cells called platelets rush to the scene.
Rough edges of the blood vessel wall help them stick together and form a plug, filling in small tears and sending out more chemical triggers. Then, proteins called "clotting factors" finish the job, trapping blood cells in a mesh-like net.
Blood thinner meds work by:
Adding more fluid to your blood
Interrupting the clotting process
Relaxing you so your blood flows freely
Blood thinner meds work by:
These drugs don't actually make your blood thinner; they make it harder to form clots. That's a good thing if you're at risk for clots that could slow or block the flow inside your blood vessels.
Common medications like warfarin (Coumadin) and heparin affect different steps of the process than newer ones like apixaban (Eliquis), dabigatran (Pradaxa), edoxaban (Lixiana, Savaysa), and rivaroxaban (Xarelto).
What in your medicine cabinet can help prevent blood clots?
Liquid cold medicine
Aspirin
Antacid tablets
What in your medicine cabinet can help prevent blood clots?
That everyday remedy for aches and pains is also an anti-platelet drug. It keeps your body from making thromboxane, the chemical that tells your platelets to form a clot. There are prescription antiplatelets, too.
Talk to your doctor before you start taking aspirin to prevent blood clots. It can be dangerous when you have certain medical conditions.
What's the best way to avoid blood clots while flying?
Always go first class.
Have a glass of wine.
Don't sit still.
What's the best way to avoid blood clots while flying?
When you settle into a small space for a while, like on a plane or in a car, you can develop a clot called a DVT (deep vein thrombosis). It's very unlikely you'll get one, but if you do, it could become deadly.
Lower your chances of trouble by drinking lots of water. Stand up and move around every hour or two. Or at least change your sitting position and flex your feet. Don't cross your legs -- that cuts off blood supply.