If I'd clotted again whilst therapeutic on Warfarin, the first thing I'd do is change the anti-coag drug I was taking.

There are plenty of options available now, both oral & injections, so I'd get to a hemo who knows their stuff & wants to talk options, before having an IVC filter fitted.

That's just me..........

I'm a little confused because I don't know why putting in a filter should have anything to do with genetic testing. You should get the testing either way, I would think.

And, if your target range on warfarin hasn't been upped, you should seriously consider some of the other anticoagulants, like scatty suggests.

Don't know if this hemo is doing the right stuff.

Is the filter being considered because they don't want to risk clots in your legs traveling to your lungs while you're off warfarin ( so that they can test you)?

Are the recommending a permanent or temporary filter?

I went to a vascular doctor, not a hematologist. They want to put filters in he said because I am clotting while theraputic and yes, so I can be off warfarin and tested. He said the filters are are temporary or permanent. I go back on tuesday to see him. I'll attempt to get more information then.

I have a filter and am fine with having it, but if it were me, I would see a hema on the issue with clotting while on warfarin. I think they're better versed in these types of matters.

I had an IVC filter placed after my initial DVT diagnosis. Upon discharge from that hospital stay, the docs (interventional radiologist & hospitalist) scheduled an appointment for me to come back to have the filter removed in three weeks. My understanding was that while filters can be permanent, the medical community is not thrilled about leaving them in younger (I'm 34), healthier patients, due to the limited knowledge of long-term viability.

When I went back for filter removal, my clot had worsened, and the docs (four interventional radiologists, three hospitalists) did everything they could to get me to a point where they felt comfortable removing the filter. Three surgical interventions later, filter was out. And the next morning I had bilateral PEs with near occlusion.

So, while I'm glad the filter is out at this point, I wonder what the harm would have been to leave it there, and whether my PEs were avoidable.

Hope that helps at least a little.

KJE, that's crazy! Do they think the cause of your clot was related to the surgery to remove the filter?

I think the issue with the temporary filters is that it should be removed, since there are some reported cases of pieces of the filter breaking off, causing all kinds of serious problems. So that may have been why they wanted to remove it.

Mine is permanent and ain't going no where.

I have a permanent IVC filter. It was placed in there when I was 25. I was supposed to get it removed but it lodged itself in there pretty good, and the surgeon could not remove it (it's ever so slightly tilted.) Do I worry about it? Of course!! All the vascular surgeons I've spoke with admit there is limited information about leaving filters in for extended periods of time. Of course I don't want to become a statistic in the future, but it is my hope and faith in medicine that they will find something out before my filter ever becomes a problem, if I am so lucky to live a long, long life :) Good luck with your decision. I am happy mine is there for me for now.

For those of you with filters that have become stuck...

I had my filter inserted when I was 25 (I'm 26 now, it was put in this August), and it also tilted and got lodged permanently. I was told by doctors at Tokyo (I was traveling when I got my DVT) and at NYU that the filter would be there forever.

I found a doctor at Stanford who removes these filters. He is absolutely amazing and people go to him from around the world. My DVT is very widespread (my entire left leg, up to my IVC, including pulmonary embolisms when I first entered the hospital), and Dr. Kuo has helped me immensely (every other hospital I was treated at did not provide me with aggressive treatment). In addition to removing my filter in under half an hour (no big deal), he also gave me a stent in my iliac/pelvic vein because the vein had become permanently occluded/blocked.

http://stanfordhospital.org/clinicsmedServices/medicalServices/interventionalRadiology/dvt/ivc_filter.html

I was definitely scared and worried that I would have the IVC filter stuck in me for the rest of my life. It's gone now and I don't have to worry about it piercing any of my organs.

I would seriously look into contacting Dr. Kuo!