Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) Support Group

Deep-vein thrombosis, also known as deep-venous thrombosis or DVT, is the formation of a blood clot ("thrombus") in a deep vein. It can be caused by something preventing blood from circulating or clotting normally. Join the support group if you are coping with DVT and find others who are going through the same challenges.

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Heart, Blood & Circulation
/ Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) Support Group

Keep all your records!!!!

Brooklin
Brooklin
I didn't keep my records from three years ago when I had DVT #2.
I wish I had but we moved and I NEVER thought in a million years I'd be a person to have another DVT. Was I wrong.
If I had kept the calendar of my Warfarin dosage at that time, I would have avoided an INR of 5.6. The doctor started me on 5mgs at the get go because that's what the protocol was. Had she known that I was super sensitive to Warfarin, I'd have been able to avoid a high INR.
So, the message to the "newbies" is document, document, document.
If it's only just to keep a calendar, do it.
I wish I had.
jeremy1999
jeremy1999
You also need to keep copies of your medical records because in the future some new doctor may challenge your diagnosis and say that you never had blood clots. Some doctors will try and walk back your diagnosis of having a clotting disorder if you are clot free for a number of years. I know people on other forums that this has happened to. All I need are the radiology images of my DVT/PE and I will have a complete cd with all of my medical records on them. I already have the reports, but it is a good idea to have the radiology images for future comparison. Thank you for bringing this topic up. It is most definitely sound advice.
Brooklin
Brooklin
Thankfully I have a new doctor who has all the records she needs as proof of my most recent clot because she was the doctor who sent me to the ER to have my leg scanned and it turned out to be clot #3.
No records are available for clot #1 which happened in 2002. I do have some records from clot #2 which was in 2012.
I now have a folder for my health stuff and everything goes in it.
rmb
rmb
A new doctor usually orders copies of medical records from your old doctor., if the doctors are not in the same medical group and doesn't have access to them. So, unless a record is lost, there's no reason a new doctor wouldn't be able to get that information. Doctors do this all the time.

I'm not saying not to get copies of your records, just that in most cases it's not a cause for problems. I've never had an issue and I've seen several different doctors over the years.
Brooklin
Brooklin
My first DVT was in 2002. I called the hematologist on Long Island (I now live in MA) and was told that those records were archived and that I could not get them.
I called Doctor #2 in Brooklyn and she was on vacation and I was told that there was no back up and no one to answer any questions.
No surprise there as her staff, on a good day, was rude and noncompliant with any requests I may have had.
Hoping that I won't be moving again unless it's to the old folks home and I won't care at that point who has what!
jan11965
jan11965
Each state has different rules on how long medical records are supposed to be retained. It is 7 years in my state. I wanted to compare some old orthopedic scans with more current ones and was surprised to find they had been destroyed. Keep your own records.
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