Blood clots: signs, causes and how to prevent them
Blood clots can be small and harmless or life threatening. Knowing how they form, what to watch for, and what to do can save you trouble. This guide gives clear, practical steps you can use today.
Symptoms and when to seek help
A clot forms when blood cells and proteins stick together after injury to stop bleeding. That’s normal in cuts, but clots inside veins or arteries are dangerous. Deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, usually happens in a calf or thigh and feels like persistent swelling, pain, warmth, or redness. If a clot breaks free and travels to the lungs it causes a pulmonary embolism. Warning signs of an embolism include sudden shortness of breath, chest pain that worsens with breathing, rapid heartbeat, lightheadedness, or coughing up blood. Those symptoms need emergency care.
Common risk factors are long bed rest or travel, recent surgery, pregnancy, certain cancers, smoking, obesity, and hormone medicines like birth control or hormone replacement. Age over fifty and family history also raise risk. If you have more than one risk factor, tell your doctor and ask about prevention.
If you suspect a clot your doctor may order an ultrasound for a leg, a D dimer blood test, or a CT scan for suspected lung clots. Treatment depends on location and severity. Most people start anticoagulant medicines that slow clot growth and prevent new clots. Common options include warfarin, direct oral anticoagulants like apixaban or rivaroxaban, and injectable heparin in hospital. Treatment length can range from weeks to months or longer for chronic risk.
Prevention and treatment
Simple actions lower your daily risk. Stay active and avoid long periods of sitting. On flights or drives, stand and walk every hour, stretch your calves, and wear loose clothing. Drink water and limit alcohol. If you smoke, seek help to quit. Manage weight, control blood pressure, and treat diabetes. If you take hormone pills and have risk factors, discuss safer alternatives with your clinician.
During recovery from a clot, follow medicine directions closely. Never stop anticoagulants without talking to your doctor. Use a pill box, set phone reminders, and attend follow up blood tests when required. Ask about compression stockings if swelling bothers you. Also learn fall prevention because bleeding is a side effect of blood thinners.
When to call for help: new sudden breathlessness, chest pain, fainting, severe leg swelling, or bright red blood when coughing. If minor bleeding happens while on blood thinners, contact your provider for advice. For any doubt, seek medical attention rather than waiting.
Before any surgery or dental work tell all providers you take blood thinners. Pregnancy, active cancer, or inherited clotting disorders change treatment plans. Specialists will tailor care and timing. Keep an updated medicine list, report minor bleeding, and consider a medical ID if you will be on anticoagulants long term.
Blood clots are common but often preventable. With awareness, timely action, and simple lifestyle changes you can cut risk and act fast when signs appear. Talk to your healthcare team about individual risks and a prevention plan.
