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.
So, I moved from NY to MA two weeks ago. As if that were not stressful enough I had to find a new doctor. My former internist told me to see a hematologist and I saw her today. My INR was good but she wanted to test for possible blood disorder. When I went to the lab I asked them how many vials they needed to take and they said 8. Well, I had a vial or two taken out at the doctor's office and then the lab wanted 8. My veins are non-existent in my arms so I have had to instruct those who take my blood that it has to come out of my hand. One and a half vials later and no blood was coming into the vial. They then wanted to send me to another department to have my blood drawn via IV. I said NOOOOOO and I left.
They told me that I could come back and do two vials at a time if I wanted to.
I thought that 8 vials was excessive. Can anyone tell me any differently?
The doctor also told me that blood testing for blood disorders hasn't really changed much in the ten years after I was first tested (negative by the way). So I wonder what is the point of torturing me.
They told me that I could come back and do two vials at a time if I wanted to.
I thought that 8 vials was excessive. Can anyone tell me any differently?
The doctor also told me that blood testing for blood disorders hasn't really changed much in the ten years after I was first tested (negative by the way). So I wonder what is the point of torturing me.
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Look at what my best friend did with my picture!
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We all have 24 hours in a day. How we spend these hours is important. Watching a little bit of a video about how sitting affects us made me aware of how much sitting and laying down I do. Gonna have to work on that.Your turn. Tell me another truth.
lupus and it's pretty much the only test that I recognized. I think if I had lupus I would have known it.
Lupus the autoimmune disease and lupus anticoagulant are two different things. Sometimes they can be related, but they are not the same thing at all. Rest assured that they aren't testing to see if you have lupus ... they're checking for lupus anticoagulant.
They actually describe how misleading the name is on the Wikipedia page under Terminology:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lupus_anticoagulant
Thanks for clearing that up for me. I am trying to find the courage to go back to the hospital next week for further blood tests. When they could not get very much blood out of my hand they told me that I could get an IV and that would solve the problem, give them the blood that I needed and be on my way. Maybe next week I will go that route.
The one thing that I was happy about was the INR test was a little stick to the finger and results are almost immediate. When I lived in Brooklyn I had to go to the lab and the results were given to me the next day but only if I called the doctor's office.
Thanks for the info. I will finish the blood tests that the hematologist ordered and then see what happens. I would hate to have to start this whole blood thing all over again. Ten years ago I was negative for hypercoagulable (whatever that means) and this new hematologist did not think that the testing now was much different than the testing done 10 years ago. It would have been helpful if I had had the results of the tests done 10 years ago but my former hematologist's office said they were in storage and no way to get them for me.
The first time my hema tested me, he ran tests for only the most common disorders. When I reclotted later with PEs, he ran a test for pretty much everything out there. I mean, I was negative on everything either way, but it was a slightly different series of tests.
Better to be thorough this time (and be sure to ask for copies of the results!) then assume you had everything run ten years ago.
The 8 vials are deceiving because it appears that theyre taking far more blood than they really are, but the volume of blood isnt that great. So try to remember that. A good lab tech will fly through those vials pretty quickly. I think I was done, once the needle was in the vein, in less than 45 seconds. And I think I had 10 vials as well, because they did blood counts and other tests along with the genetic tests.
So take a deep breath and try not to psyche yourself out because that just makes it that much more stressful. .
If you are diagnosed with a clotting disorder, it would mean the difference between being on Coumadin for six months or for life. It helps the doctors understand your risks for clotting in the long term, which is a big deal when the alternative is Coumadin for life. Just hang in there, and best of luck!