As if going into hospital was not bad enough..........

[michel]

Bloodclots 'kill thousands in hospital'

2005-03-08 19:23:14

Bloodclots kill thousands of people in hospital each year, research has found - far more than MRSA or any other hospital superbug.

The condition, known as venous thromboembolism (VTE), follows surgery and during or just after hospital stays.

Clots form in parts of the body such as the veins of the legs and can move to the heart, blocking blood flow with fatal results. People who spend long periods in bed without taking exercise are particularly at risk.

MPs belonging to the All Party Parliamentary Health Select Committee said the toll is between 25,000-32,000 in the UK each year, and they have set out guidelines that could help prevent tens of thousands of such deaths

And a charity has praised the report. Dr Beverley Hunt, medical director for Lifeblood said: "This Select Committee has issued its recommendations to the Government in a bid to cut the alarming death rate. Lifeblood urges the Department of Health and NHS to implement these recommendations immediately."

The risk factors are well known and can be spotted relatively easily.

Lifeblood says this means that patients should be assessed for risk when they are first admitted to hospital to reduce the incidence of a killer clot forming significantly.

 

[Valjean]

Bedbound patients in the States, who are not on anticoagulant therapy, use sequential compression devices (SCDs) on the legs or feet to prevent venous stasis.

We used to use tight, anti-embolism stockings, but these are much less effective.

 

[anders]

Namaste Seyorni-ji,

I find no meaningful "SCD" hits on Swedish sites. Would "pump boots" (my translation) be a possible description?

Shukriya

Anders

 

[Mr Spinkles]

Bloodclots 'kill thousands in hospital'

Perhaps hemophilia isn't so bad after all.

 

[Valjean]

In my hospital we use two types of anti embolism devices, Anders. The most common is wrapped around the leg, or, more rarely, an arm, and secured with velcro. It is connected to a pneumatic pump which sequentially inflates first the lower calf area, then the upper, then the thigh. Times and pressures can be programmed.

The second type is small and wraps around the foot. It inflates fast -- almost explosively -- sending a sort of fluid shock wave medially up the large veins of the legs and thighs.

Some device of this type is used on anyone at risk of what, in the States, is termed "deep vein thrombosis (DVT).