Ok, medical people, tell us about this blood clot.

[proud2BlibKansan]

What does it mean? What's the treatment? Surgery? How scary is this?

on edit: Hilary Clinton has been hospitalized for a blood clot.

[likesmountains 52]

1. really depends where it is. I have not seen any further information about it.

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. I've had 2 concussions. Both times the doctors had me convinced a blood clot was a really bad thing.

So this really scares me.

But I know very little about health related issues.

[dkf]

2. AP says she is there for observation...

They are using anti-coagulants for the blood clot. I hope that is the extent. Crossing my fingers.

[silverweb]

4. Lots and lots of variables.

[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]Can't even begin to speculate without much more data. We'll have to wait and see what information the doctors release.

[Rex]

5. What are you talking about?

Who are you talking about?

[Tx4obama]

7. Hillary Clinton admitted to hospital with blood clot, see below

LBN OP here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014351766

[CaliforniaPeggy]

8. She's talking about Secy of State Hillary Clinton.

Her concussion caused a blood clot to form.

[Rene]

37. or conversely, the blood clot caused her to faint and get the concussion

I was wondering about the tens of thousands of flying miles she's put in in the last four years. very dangerous for forming clots in the legs/lungs to be confined in an airline for hours, and changing altitude so much etc. my cousin had a clot form during a flight to England and it lead to a heart attack, right after arriving there on vacation.

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. Sorry. Hillary Clinton has been hospitalized for a blood clot.

I hate OPs like I just did. Please accept my apology.

[Cerridwen]

18. You can edit the OP.

I noticed elsewhere you posted you'd forgotten the fact that you can edit "indefinitely."

Since you don't like "OPs like <you> just did", this is my attempt at gently reminding you that you can edit the OP.

Sorry. I'm out of practice with "gentle." I hope this doesn't come across as harsh.

[proud2BlibKansan]

19. I did already.

Again - I apologize. I'm just kinda freaked out about this.

[Cerridwen]

24. I'm sorry. No apology needed. (edited)

I understood at first and was trying to head off the...whatever..derailers.

I'm a lot freaked by this so not thinking clearly right this second.

Sorry.

edit to put "sorry" in title.

[Rex]

44. NP. Seemed really serious.

And it is!

Funny you get to know posters and what they post...had to run out but saw that and was hoping it was nothing serious! Other posters I wouldn't have even wondered what was going on and left without posting!

No apology needed. It was something bad.


EDIT - sorry didn't mean to sound so gruff, just got worried. Please call SKITTLES off, Chuck Norris is hiding in the bushes and won't come out until she leaves (THANKS SKITTLES).

[Skittles]

33. you wnat I should kick some Rex ass and clue you in?

heh, I know the feeling - being a night person I am very often out of the loop

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. It's probably in her brain, since that's where her concussion happened.

It could cause a stroke, but hopefully it won't since the doctors are trying to dissolve it with anticoagulants. Think heparin or something like that.

Surgery could happen, but not if they can dissolve the clot.

It's a delicate time, and they are watching her like a hawk for any untoward symptoms.

They really don't want the clot to move; if it does, then they call it an embolus. That would be bad, because you don't know where it'll go.

[likesmountains 52]

11. Well, could be in her lung, or still in her leg...we just don't know.

[Barack_America]

22. The only cranial blood clot they would use anticoagulants on is a venous thrombosis.

Which can be caused by severe dehydration.

More likely is that she formed a blood clot in her leg due to immobility. This is not uncommon, but unfortunately, can be related to things we don't want to think about right now (so I won't mention).

[CaliforniaPeggy]

25. Ah, you're probably right!

I'd forgotten about those.

[WinkyDink]

9. It's a BLOOD CLOT. How GOOD can it be?

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. I've known a couple people who nearly died from blood clots.

And one who did die. But he knew about the clot and didn't have health insurance so he didn't go to the ER, as he should have.

[theinquisitivechad]

10. It has the possibility to be very serious.

Especially after a concussion. Epidural hematoma, a laceration of a blood vessel in the head that forms a blood clot between the skull and the brain's protective covering. The swelling can put pressure on the brain that can result in death. This is what Liam Neeson's wife died of after she hit her head when skiing, I guess it was a few years ago.

Disclaimer, not a doctor, but enough of them in the family that I've heard about this stuff backwards and forwards.

That said, I certainly hope it is nowhere near as serious as the worst-case scenario above. I love her and I'm thinking good thoughts for her.

[riverwalker]

14. they would not use blood thinners then

she would bleed more into her brain. I wish we had more details.

[riverwalker]

12. the reporting is so vaque

"a blood clot stemming from her concussion" could mean a DVT clot in her legs from immobility, it could mean a pulmonary embolus. A clot within a vessel in her brain is a stroke, and would be treated with TPA to dissolve it, but the report doesn't sound like it was a stroke. If it was old blood on her brain from when she fell, I don't think they would use blood thinners for that. It would be absorbed on it's own, or if large, surgery to remove it.

[PCIntern]

15. Correct...

To my knowledge you never use thinners for a clot in the brain...you can cause a fatal hemorrhage. I know a fair amount about this but since we don't have any detailed info, we can't speculate.

[Skittles]

34. how do they find blood clots, PCIntern?

I'm afraid to google lest I get queasy

[PCIntern]

38. If it is in her leg there is a distinct change in her pulse and swelling

Of the extremity. There are Doppler scans and other diagnostic means as well.

I doubt they've intervened surgically...too soon and we'd probably know by now if she were taken to surgery.

[Skittles]

39. keep us updated with your knowledge!

very much appreciated

[likesmountains 52]

27. +1..thanks

[union_maid]

13. I imagine massive testing is going on

They might be looking at whether the clot predated the fall. They attributed the fainting spell to dehydration, but that sounds like a guess rather than knowing for sure. Hopefully they'll get it all under control quickly. We've got lots of experience with clots in our family, but not in the brain. That's much scarier, although they are all serious.

[kestrel91316]

17. We don't have enough information to begin to speculate.

We have ZERO idea where this blood clot is located.

[JohnnyLib2]

20. For sure. Not that it will even slow the speculation.....

[Control-Z]

21. +1 (nt)

[Barack_America]

26. Google reveals she's had a history of DVT in the past...

...so that's likely what she's dealing with here.

A blood clot in the brain is much more serious and doesn't fit some of the details revealed.

The bad news, given the recurrence of a clot, she may have to be on lifelong blood thinners, according to current guidelines.

[proud2BlibKansan]

28. One of my Facebook friends who is a nurse just said it sounds like it's in her leg

Based on something she heard on CNN about the meds they're giving her.

[Barack_America]

30. The "48 hours" hospitalization sounds pretty classic for the heparin bridge to coumadin.

Though she'd also have the option of the newer and more expensive alternatives.

My thoughts and prayers are with her, regardless.

[proud2BlibKansan]

32. Thanks for the info

[flamingdem]

31. Thanks, glad it's not about the brain

and that this is a condition she had before, whew

[rainbow4321]

43. If she has a history of them she may have been on preventative meds

that people take (warfarin, etc...). With her head injury the docs may have decreased or totally stopped the medicaton out of fear of her getting bleeding on the brain. Stopping/decreasing the med = increased chance of clots forming.

[doc03]

29. First of all I am not a doctor. But Dr. Gupta on CNN said it is most likely

in her leg because of the medication they say she is taking. They can be serious but I have had them twice myself and after 5 days returned to work in a steel mill. They found I have
some kind of genetic blood clotting disorder and I have to take blood thinners indefinitely. I had my last clot six years ago. I am in fairly good health and I do anything I want. Every day I take 4 MG of rat poison (Warfarin) and have to have a blood test once a month.

[appleannie1]

35. I am being treated for blood clots in both lungs. They will start her out on Heparin

by IV and then start coumadin (warfarin) until it reaches a therapudic level. She will be on thar for months and will have to have regular blood tests to keep the level correct. The idea is to dissolve the clot so it does not travel to the heart or brain.

[likesmountains 52]

36. These drugs do not dissolve clots...they only make it less likely that the clot will grow.

[Remmah2]

40. Looks like they caught it early.

They found it during an exam and NOT while exhibiting symptoms. Once symptoms start to show (stroke) you have about an hour to get treatment started. She'll probably have to go on blood thinners. Probably no harm done since it was discovered early. I do fear it will not be good for a presidential run in 2016.

[applegrove]

41. My dad had one that started in his leg and moved through his heart. He was rushed

to the hospital and treated. He ended up in the hospital for a week. After that he was on cumadin (warfarin aka rat poison) to thin his blood. He has to get tested regularly to make sure the levels are table in his blood. He gets scans every year to make sure no other clot is developing. 4 years later and he is doing well. If Hillary got a clot in her brain that is very dangerous. Could lead to a stroke. Vibes to her and hers.

[rainbow4321]

42. Tons of variables, too many to speculate about

Just got home so I have not read all the online articles, but I don't think that they have even said where the clot formed yet? Location can determine the potential severity.
I've taken care of people who notice their leg/arm is swollen, red, warm,painful and they head to the ER, get lab work to determine the "thickness" of their blood, CT or ultrasounds to look at the affected area to look for the source of the symptoms. If the symptoms are severe enough and a blood clot is found, they are admitted to be started on blood thinner pills, shots, or if bad enough, blood thinner IV meds that are continuous while they get follow up blood work every 6 to 8 hours to monitor the thick/thinness of their blood.
Multiple things can bring a clot on...what meds the patient is on, their activity level, even how hydrated their body is. Dehyrdation can lead to thick blood which can lead to blood clots, especially if the person is less active than they were before. Our facility protocol is to give heparin shots three times a day to most patients (unless their diagnosis contradicts it's use) to PREVENT blood clots since they are less active in the hospital. When I go to give it, I always say to the patient "this doesn't mean you HAVE a blood clot, it is to keep you from possible GETTING one since you are less active here in the hospital and prone to getting one".

Basically, it really depends on where the clot location is...limb? head? lung?.
What symptoms was she having that led to her seeking further medical care?
Needless to say, if the location is in her brain, it is a much higher risk ordeal than a limb. My concern would be if it developed from the impact of her heard on whatever it is she hit when she fell. A hard enough hit could have damaged arteries/veins, etc.. in her head/brain and led to formation of a blood clot. Again, without hearing it directly from a very reliable source first hand (family member publically speaking, etc...), everything is subject to speculation and there are waaayyyy too many what-ifs involved in such a diagnosis/situation.

For the most part, the patients we have who come in for treatment of blood clots for home in a few days once the thickness of their blood is stable (not too thick, not too thin!). If they are on shots or IV blood thinners in the hospital, they are weaned off of them and changed to oral blood thinners, and they then do follow up visits with their doc for blood work to assure the medication is at a therapeutic level.