Take Action: March is Blood Clot Awareness Month

By Debbie Martin, RN, Parish Nurse

Each year, blood clots affect an estimated 900,000 people in the U.S. and claim about 100,000 lives. They remain a leading cause of preventable hospital deaths, but prevention, early recognition, and effective treatment save lives. Blood clots do not discriminate—they affect people of all ages, races, and genders.

Know Your Risk Factors

The most important step in prevention is knowing if you are at risk. Major risk factors include:

• Medical Events: Recent hospitalization for illness, major surgery (especially of the pelvis, abdomen, hip, or knee), or hip/knee replacement surgery.

• Physical Trauma: Severe trauma such as a car accident or injury to a vein caused by a broken bone or severe muscle injury.

• Health Conditions: Cancer and its treatments, overweight, diabetes, or long-term heart and lung conditions.

• Lifestyle & Age: Smoking, being age 55 or older, and confinement to a bed or wheelchair.

• Travel: Sitting too long, especially with legs crossed, or traveling for long periods by plane, train, or car.

• Women’s Health: Pregnancy (including the six weeks after birth), use of birth control containing estrogen (pill, patch, or ring), or hormone therapy.

Recognize the Signs and Symptoms

Recognizing these symptoms can save your life or the life of a loved one.

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) - Blood Clot in the Leg or Arm:

• Swelling.

• Pain or tenderness not caused by an injury.

• Skin that is warm to the touch.

• Redness or discoloration of the skin.

• If you experience these, alert your doctor as soon as possible.

  
  

Pulmonary Embolism (PE) - Blood Clot in the Lung:

• Difficulty breathing.

• Chest pain that worsens with a deep breath or lying down.

• Coughing or coughing up blood.

• Faster than normal or irregular heartbeat.

• Seek immediate medical attention if you experience these signs.

  
  

Prevention and Treatment

Blood clots are preventable and can be safely treated. To reduce your risk:

• Stay Active: If traveling or sitting for long periods, get up and walk around every two to three hours. Pump your feet while sitting.

• Healthy Choices: Maintain a healthy weight and do not smoke.

• Medical Dialogue: Before any surgery, talk with your doctor about blood clots.

  
  

Treatment typically involves anticoagulant medications, often called "blood thinners". While they do not actually thin the blood, they slow the body's ability to form new clots and keep existing ones from growing larger. In severe cases, "clot busters" may be used via a catheter to dissolve the clot directly.

A Personal Note from Debbie

This condition is very scary and often misdiagnosed. My best friend died at age 33 from a blood clot that traveled to his lungs after a knee surgery; doctors initially misdiagnosed it as pneumonia. His mother also died from a Pulmonary Embolism that was misdiagnosed as Shingle pain in an ER. Even as a teenager, I experienced burning calf pain from a small clot caused by birth control.

Don't ignore the signs. As I once told a friend who refused to go to the hospital: you can’t take care of your loved ones if you aren't here.

A diagnosis can be life-changing, but you are not alone. You can join the Team Stop The Clot® Facebook Group to connect with other survivors and share your journey.