Blood Clots and their diagnosis

Blood Clots and their diagnosis

When you get a cut or wound, your body forms blood clots, a thickened mass of blood tissue, to help stop the bleeding. Proteins in your blood called fibrins work with small blood cell fragments called platelets, to form the clot. This is called coagulation, a process that helps the body when an injury occurs because it slows blood loss. After bleeding has stopped and healing has occurred, the body should break down and remove the clots. But sometimes blood clots form too easily or don't dissolve properly and travel through the body limiting or blocking blood flow. This is called excessive blood clotting or hypercoagulation, and can be very dangerous. In a case of excessive blood clotting, these clots can form in, or travel to, the arteries or veins in the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs and limbs, which in turn can lead to heart attack or stroke.

Many factors are pointed out by the best cardiologist in Jaipur which can cause excessive blood clotting including certain diseases and conditions, genetic mutations and medicines. These causes fall into two categories: acquired and genetic.

  • Acquired means that excessive blood clotting was triggered by another disease or condition. Smoking, overweight and obesity, pregnancy, use of birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy, cancer, prolonged bed rest, or car or plane trips are a few examples.
  • The genetic, or inherited, source of excessive blood clotting is less common and is usually due to genetic defects. These defects usually occur in the proteins needed for blood clotting and can also occur with the substances that delay or dissolve blood clots.

Possible Effects of Blood Clots include:

  • Heart Attack – According to the best cardiologist in Jaipur, a blood clot in a coronary artery can lead to a heart attack. A heart attack occurs if blood flow to a section of heart muscle becomes blocked. If blood flow is not restored quickly, the section of heart muscle becomes damaged from lack of oxygen and begins to die.
  • Kidney Failure - A blood clot in the kidneys can lead to kidney failure, where kidneys can no longer remove fluids and waste from your body.
  • Pulmonary Embolism - If a blood clot travels from a deep vein in the body to the lungs, it’s called a pulmonary embolism.
  • Deep Vein Thrombosis - A blood clot in a vein deep in your arm or leg can cause pain, swelling, redness, or increased warmth in the affected limb can cause deep vein.
  • Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) - This is narrowing of the peripheral arteries, most commonly in the arteries of the pelvis and legs.
  • Pregnancy-related problems - Blood clots can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, and other pregnancy-related problems, such as preeclampsia, which is high blood pressure that occurs during pregnancy.

Best Cardiology doctor in Jaipur use a variety of tests to detect blood clots. If your doctor suspects a blood clot, he might recommend:

  • Blood tests can, in some cases, be used to rule out a blood clot.
  • Ultrasound provides a clear view of your veins and blood flow.
  • Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) is an imaging test similar to a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test. An MRA looks specifically at blood vessels.