Pulmonary Embolism Support Group

By far the most common form of pulmonary embolism is a thromboembolism, which occurs when a blood clot, generally a venous thrombus, becomes dislodged from its site of formation and embolizes to the arterial blood supply of one of the lungs. Symptoms may include difficulty breathing, pain during breathing, and more rarely circulatory instability and death.

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How to Know When to Go to the ER

TossNTurn
TossNTurn
I just got a flier in the mail from my local hospital. They had a list of the six most common reasons why people go to the ER and how to tell if it is really an emergency. The six reasons:

(1) Abdominal pain
(2) Chest pain
(3) Back pain
(4) Headaches
(5) Fractures and sprains
(6) Pediatric emergencies

I have to say that I was surprised that breathing problems weren't in the top 6!

The article said, when trying to tell if something is an emergency, that "The common thread is something that is abnormal for an individual from what they're used to, with sudden onset or severe intensity." For many of the items on the list, especially if it has been going on for a while and hasn't suddenly gotten worse, they recommended checking in with the family doc before heading to the ER. The only exception was chest pain--for that one, they said you should always go to the ER.

In summary:
Chest pain=Always go to ER
Abnormal, sudden, severe=Go to the ER
Mild, ongoing symptoms=Check with family doc

Don't know how much this will help us when we're seized with anxiety and breathing issues in the middle of the night, but at least it provides some guidance!
deleted_user
deleted_user
thanks for the post. my issue is with leg cramps. I always fear any leg cramp can be another DVT. Its tough for me to tell whether the cramp is from working out or bad posture.

Last time I waited 5 days before I had legs scanned. No DVT but CT scan showed PE, so it had already moved. Now, I give a cramp 2 days assuming there is no swelling.

Anyone else get leg cramps? How can you tell if its a DVT?
rmb
rmb
If I really think hard about what my DVT felt like, it was different from a leg cramp; it was more like an endless Charlie horse feeling and very tender. So when I get a leg cramp, I generally don't sweat it. I actually get leg cramps in my DVT leg quite a bit and it just feels different plus it goes away. The DVT pain was constant. Also if on warfarin, chances are pretty favorable that it's not a clot.
Aquapuppy
Aquapuppy
I had DVT's and a PE. With my DVT's, the leg pain was very intense. It was so bad that I had a lot of difficulty just lifting my leg to get into the bathtub to take a shower. Plus, my leg was swollen and reddish. And the pain was constant~~nothing made it better.

I know others can have different symptoms, either more or less than what I experienced~~but that's how it happened for me.

I wish there was a definite sign that we could all look for. Unfortunately, we can all be different. I really hope you don't have any further issues with DVT or PE, and that you stay healthy.

Peace and blessings.
Aquapuppy
Aquapuppy
PS: Toss, thanks for the post. It has helpful info.
indwen123
indwen123
I wanted to comment on this because I'm getting cramps in the opposite leg where I originally had my DVTs (inner thigh). Now I never really felt pain when I got the original clot in my left leg. The only thing that happened was that I had the severe pain for a day or two, and the ankle swelled up. Because I was sure it was a running injury, I left it alone. Well, the swelling never left (two months) and I finally got it diagnosed. The strange thing is that I had two clots; the one in my ankle are and one up in the inner thigh? I don't think I ever felt that one? Anyway, I went to my F.Dr. and he looked at my right leg: now swelling, no sensitivity when touched, no discoloration. Consequently, the Dr. didn't think that I needed to go for an ultrasound, which is what I wanted to do. He thought that the problem could be muscle cramps due to lack of potassium or lack of hydration. This was last week. The pains come and go, so I'll monitor this for any significant changes.

Indwen
diamorrow
diamorrow
I had no pain with DVT...so I would have no clue when to head to the ER unless it had moved and I was short of breath...not good.
rmb
rmb
I don't think that's uncommon to not have had DVT pain. I had PE symptoms way before I had DVT symptoms, like a couple of months before. I didn't go to the ER for my PE symptoms because it really didn't feel like an urgent thing at the time, just felt like my chest was fatigued and I had pressure on my upper back and that I was getting more winded. I thought it may be my allergies. It didn't seem severe when it first started.

So it's not always going to be clear cut when you do and when you don't go. You could say that for anything. Not everyone has symptoms of a heart attack either. What you do have is your history and your knowledge so hopefully that can be your guide for whether to ride something out, call your doc, or go to the ER.
deleted_user
deleted_user
I'm with diamorrow... I had no DVT symptoms and didn't even know where the clot was until a tech from my second ultrasound told me. My first signs of a problem were sharp chest pains on the right side in the middle of the night. I couldn't take more than a very shallow breath, which was ok for awhile (hoping to make it to a clinic in the morning), then the panic set in which made it harder to take a short breath which lead to more stress, etc, etc, etc... At that point it was ER time.
TossNTurn
TossNTurn
Yeah, there's no way to know to go to the ER if you have no symptoms...wouldn't it be great if we could figure that out??

I think this list is about how to evaluate symptoms that you ARE having. I posted it mostly to try to provide some guidance to those of us plagued with anxiety when trying to evaluate each little ache and pain after having clots.
jenlozi
jenlozi
When I was at the ER they made me feel like a hypochondriac for coming in and being short of breath with back pain, so I am very cautious about why I go, since it cost me an arm and leg. At least now I can through in a diagnosed PE to the pictures
deleted_user
deleted_user
Also, it's especially important to remember in this wintery weather, that if anyone one Warfarin/Coumadin falls and hits their head........go straight to the ER, even if you feel fine. I was told this emphatically by a pharmacist at my Coumadin clinic. It's snowing for the first time in many years here, so I'm being very careful when I have to go out.

Otherwise, if I'm not sure if I should go to the ER or not, I just call an on-call doc first, and he or she tells me what to do.
Ferr
Ferr
Definitely if you get a severe headache, are a little confused and are light headed or having vision problems go to the ER
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