With the Christmas holiday season upon us and many people traveling it’s a good time to discuss the relationship between blood clots and traveling.

While generally a rare occurrence, potentially dangerous blood clots most often  form in the veins of the leg and can in certain situations leave to leg veins and travel up to the heart and lungs. This detached blood clot is almost always from the deep veins in the legs and is called a pulmonary embolism.

The condition has also been known as ‘economy class syndrome’ because it is seen mostly with long plane flights. A blood clot in either varicose or non varicose veins can always occur but there are some simple things you can do to decrease the risk of developing these DVT’s (deep vein thrombi-aka clots).

The risk of developing leg blood clots is increased if you ….
-are pregnant
-are obese
-have varicose veins
-are immobile
-have had prior blood clots or have a blood clotting disorder
-have cancer
-are dehydrated

When taking unusually long flights of many hours you can….
-drink lots of fluid as people dehydrate at high altitudes which makes the blood ‘thicker’ and more likely to clot
-benefit from drinking as it will force you to get up and walk to   the bathroom which helps by squeezing the legs muscles and preventing blood stagnation in the veins
-take aspirin before flying for a few days as this will act as a mild blood thinner
-wear support hose again to compress the leg veins so less blood  is stagnant in them
-avoid having to much alcohol to drink as it is actually dehydrating
-stretch your legs by either getting up and walking, or just  lifting your heals while keeping your toes on the floor

People who are concerned about developing blood clots or who have varicose veins and are at greater risk of blood clots can set up a complimentary consultation with the doctors at the Schulman Vein and Laser Center which in in New York City and Long Island. We have over 55 years combined experience treating both varicose and spider veins using lasers, microsurgery and injection sclerotherapy.  You can contact us at SchulmanVeinAndLaserCenter.com or by phone at (212) 987-0500 or (516) 482-4477.