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Name: Venous Blood Clots Treatment (Venous Thromboembolism)
indexNumber: 17610
article type: Treatments
article slug: 17610-venous-blood-clots-treatment-venous-thromboembolism
Section Name: Overview

What is Venous Thromboembolism (VTE)?

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a condition in which blood clots form in the deep veins of the legs, pelvis or arms and travel to the heart and lungs. Blood clots that form and reside within the deep veins of the upper and lower extremities and pelvis are termed Deep Venous Thrombosis or DVTs. While DVTs are not, in themselves, life-threatening, the condition can become deadly if the blood clot travels to the lungs and becomes a pulmonary embolism or PE, interrupting normal blood flow to the lungs.

How is Venous Thromboembolism treated?

The main goal of treatment is to prevent future blood clots and to prevent existing clots from enlarging.

Medical Management

Medications include:

Anticoagulants (sometimes called blood thinners) decrease your blood's ability to clot. Anticoagulants include:

  • Warfarin (Coumadin), given by mouth.
  • Heparin or low molecular weight heparin (including enoxaparin sodium (Lovenox) or dalteparin sodium (Fragmin). Fondaparinux sodium (Arixtra) can also be used and is given as an injection.
  • New anticoagulant medications given orally (by mouth). These include rivaroxaban (Xarelto) and dabigatran (Pradaxa).
  • Thrombolytic therapy - medications delivered through a catheter that is directed into the area of the clot. Because they increase the risk of bleeding, they are only used in special situations determined by your physician.
  • Direct thrombin inhibitors are medications that interfere with the clotting process. They are used to treat some types of clots and may be prescribed for patients who cannot take heparin or low molecular weight heparins.

Interventional and Percutaneous Procedures

  • Angioplasty - a nonsurgical treatment for DVT that is used to widen the vein after the blood clot has been dissolved.
  • Stent- a small, metal mesh tube that acts as a scaffold and provides support inside the vein.
  • Inferior vena cava filters - used when you cannot take any of the blood thinners, or if you are taking blood thinners and continue to develop clots. The filter can prevent blood clots from moving from the vein in your legs to the lung (pulmonary embolism.

Surgery

Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy is a surgical procedure and the only effective treatment for patients with Chronic Pulmonary Thromboembolism (blood clot in the lungs).

Section Name: Resources

Doctors vary in quality due to differences in training and experience; hospitals differ in the number of services available. The more complex your medical problem, the greater these differences in quality become and the more they matter.

Clearly, the doctor and hospital that you choose for complex, specialized medical care will have a direct impact on how well you do. To help you make this choice, please review our Miller Family Heart and Vascular Institute Outcomes.

Cleveland Clinic Heart and Vascular Institute Specialists and Surgeons

Choosing a doctor to treat your vascular disease depends on where you are in your diagnosis and treatment. The following Heart and Vascular Institute Sections and Departments treat patients with all types of vascular disease, including blood clotting disorders.

Related Institutes & Services

Miller Family Heart & Vascular Institute

The latest information about heart & vascular disorders, treatments, tests and prevention from the No. 1-ranked heart program in the United States.

Section of Vascular Medicine: for evaluation, medical management or interventional procedures to treat vascular disease. In addition, the Non-Invasive Laboratory includes state-of-the-art computerized imaging equipment to assist in diagnosing vascular disease, without added discomfort to the patient. Call Vascular Medicine Appointments, toll-free 800-223-2273, extension 44420 or request an appointment online.

For treatment of Pulmonary Thromboembolism: Specialists from Pulmonary Medicine and the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery work together to treat the patient. See Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension (CTEPH).

Department of Vascular Surgery: surgery evaluation for surgical and interventional treatment of vascular disease, including the aorta, peripheral artery, and venous disease. Call Vascular Surgery Appointments, toll-free 800-223-2273, extension 44508 or request an appointment online.

You may also use our MyConsult second opinion consultation using the Internet.

The Heart and Vascular Institute also has specialized centers and clinics to treat certain populations of patients:

Learn more about experts who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of vascular and arterial disease.

Contact

If you need more information, click here to contact us, chat online with a nurse or call the Miller Family Heart and Vascular Institute Resource & Information Nurse at 216.445.9288 or toll-free at 866.289.6911. We would be happy to help you.

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