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.
OK I know this isn't something any of us want to think about but it's something I know that's in the back of my mind all the time, especially being in the medical field and with my INR bouncing all over the place. I am referring to strokes.
Strokes happen when blood flow to your brain stops. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. There are two kinds of stroke and many other off shoots of these strokes. The more common kind, called ischemic stroke, accounts for approximately 80 percent of all strokes. It is caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain. The other kind, called hemorrhagic stroke, is caused by a blood vessel that breaks and bleeds into the brain.
Transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) are "mini-strokes" that occur when the blood supply to the brain is briefly interrupted. A TIA is a stroke that comes and goes quickly. It happens when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in your brain. Symptoms of a TIA are like other stroke symptoms, but do not last as long. Most symptoms of a TIA disappear within an hour, although they may last for up to 24 hours. Because you cannot tell if these symptoms are from a TIA or a stroke, you should get to the hospital quickly. TIAs are often a warning sign for future strokes.
The only reason I am bringing this up is because i was at work last week and was comfortable because my INR was way up and not down so I wasn't worried about a blood clot. That's when a co-worker said to to me that's fine just don't have a wet stroke! That's when I remembered hemorrhagic strokes or wet strokes. This is why I am posting this valuable information for each of you to remember or inform your family members about. Remember we are all at risk for Strokes.
Some of the common notable symptoms of stroke include
Sudden weakness or numbness of the face, arms or legs , typically on one side of the body
Mental Disorder
Blurred vision
Loss of balance or dexterity, trouble in walking steadily
Splitting headache without any apparent reason
Difficulty in verbal communication or understanding talk
I know it's scary enough our having to deal with these DVT's/PE's, We don't think about the fact we survived not having a actual stroke, but my dear friends the potential is out there that next time we may not be so lucky. Remember each and every one of you are in my prayers always.
HUGS
Ferr
Strokes happen when blood flow to your brain stops. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. There are two kinds of stroke and many other off shoots of these strokes. The more common kind, called ischemic stroke, accounts for approximately 80 percent of all strokes. It is caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain. The other kind, called hemorrhagic stroke, is caused by a blood vessel that breaks and bleeds into the brain.
Transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) are "mini-strokes" that occur when the blood supply to the brain is briefly interrupted. A TIA is a stroke that comes and goes quickly. It happens when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in your brain. Symptoms of a TIA are like other stroke symptoms, but do not last as long. Most symptoms of a TIA disappear within an hour, although they may last for up to 24 hours. Because you cannot tell if these symptoms are from a TIA or a stroke, you should get to the hospital quickly. TIAs are often a warning sign for future strokes.
The only reason I am bringing this up is because i was at work last week and was comfortable because my INR was way up and not down so I wasn't worried about a blood clot. That's when a co-worker said to to me that's fine just don't have a wet stroke! That's when I remembered hemorrhagic strokes or wet strokes. This is why I am posting this valuable information for each of you to remember or inform your family members about. Remember we are all at risk for Strokes.
Some of the common notable symptoms of stroke include
Sudden weakness or numbness of the face, arms or legs , typically on one side of the body
Mental Disorder
Blurred vision
Loss of balance or dexterity, trouble in walking steadily
Splitting headache without any apparent reason
Difficulty in verbal communication or understanding talk
I know it's scary enough our having to deal with these DVT's/PE's, We don't think about the fact we survived not having a actual stroke, but my dear friends the potential is out there that next time we may not be so lucky. Remember each and every one of you are in my prayers always.
HUGS
Ferr
Please keep my mom in prayers. She lives in AL and I live in VA and she just had emergency back surgery last Friday. She has a multitude of medical issues (diabetes, obese, neuropathy, etc). She seems to be doing well but not sure how long she will be hospitalized for.
Hugs and blessings to all,
Tabby
I asked my husbands ER doctor the risk for stroke b/c of the blood clot and the answer was 0%. He said that unless my husband had a deformality in his heart it would be impossible for the blood clot to cross over from his lungs to his brain.
I further asked our GP what the risk is now for my husband to have a stroke b/c of blood clots and the GP offered this explanation. (I would love clarity?) He said that strokes are caused in your Arteries. DVT / PE is caused from your veins. So for strokes the risk factor is not from the blood clotting as it is from the Arteries getting blocked. So as long as my husband keeps cholesteral down and blood pressure is good he is not at increased risk for a stroke.
More info would be appreciated? I am still reading /learning... and saw this post and read it immediately!
I will absolutely watch for the signs.. and thank you for sharing... but would like to know how increased the risk is for DVT/PE sufferers to have strokes?
I found the following on www.medicinenet.com:
Embolic stroke
Another type of stroke may occur when a blood clot or a piece of atherosclerotic plaque (cholesterol and calcium deposits on the wall of the inside of the heart or artery) breaks loose, travels through open arteries, and lodges in an artery of the brain. When this happens, the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the brain is blocked and a stroke occurs. This type of stroke is referred to as an embolic stroke. For example, a blood clot might originally form in the heart chamber as a result of an irregular heart rhythm, such as occurs in atrial fibrillation. Usually, these clots remain attached to the inner lining of the heart, but occasionally they can break off, travel through the blood stream, form a plug (embolism) in a brain artery, and cause a stroke. An embolism can also originate in a large artery (for example, the carotid artery, a major artery in the neck that supplies blood to the brain) and then travel downstream to clog a small artery within the brain.
Pulmonary Embolism
If a blood clot (thrombus) forms in the one of the body's veins (deep vein thrombosis or DVT), it has the potential to break off and enter the circulatory system and travel (or embolize) through the heart and become lodged in the one of the branches of the pulmonary artery of the lung. A clot that travels through the circulatory system to another location is known as an embolus (plural emboli).
A pulmonary embolus clogs the artery that provides blood supply to part of the lung. The embolus not only prevents the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, but it also decreases blood supply to the lung tissue itself, potentially causing lung tissue to die (infarct).
http://medlineplus.gov/
http://edu.udym.com/different-kinds-of-strokes/
http://www.stoptheclot.org/learn_more/learn_more.htm
I will now add the one Tabby posted as i too am always trying to stay informed.
Try this link http://www.stroke.org.uk/campaigns/raising_awareness/act_fast.html
Basically it means you should lookout for:
F - Facial weakness - can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?
A -Arm weakness - can the person raise both arms?
S -Speech problems - can the person speak clearly and understand what you say?
T -Time to call 999
Though extremely, extremely, rare, it is possible for a DVT to cross over into the arterial system causing a stroke or heart attack. A patient who suffers from a condition known as patent foramen ovale (PFO) has a hole in the chamber of their heart which allows a venous clot (DVT) to enter the arterial system. Here is some information regarding this:
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/disorders/patent_foramen_ovale_pfo/hic_patent_foramen_ovale_pfo.aspx
The normally clotting mechanism involed in venous clots and aterial clots are totally different. Here is a good explaination from a leading blood clot specialist:
http://www.fvleiden.org/ask/35.html
Thanks for the info. I was only vaguely aware of the increased risk of stroke with anticoagulants but you made everything clearer explaining the difference between a clotting stroke and a bleeding out (anticoag-caused) stroke.
I agree with Beccyt that the FAST campaign is really good. I learnt FAST at my first aid course a couple of years ago and it sticks in the mind. Just like RED for bleeding ;-) Rest, Elevate, Direct pressure (and call an ambulance if the person is on anticoags)...