Vein blocked by blood clot in leg, coumadin therapy started
- Thread starter DandyDon
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
OP
- Messages
- 54,123
- Reaction score
- 8,270
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
Again - thanks for all the well wishes...! 
I'm a little hesitant to post here again and bump this back up as this is quickly becoming old news, but I did want to share that my doctor is very happy with my progress and has no objections to me diving now. :cheering:
I will continue the Coumadin every day without fail, the blood test exactly every two weeks, the support sock almost every day, and propping my leg up as much as possible. I will have my daughter and son-in-law down to do some tree pruning and anything else that could increase any risk for a cut or strain, and I will postpone Deco Training until January. My Instructor is having leg surgery this week anyway and will be unavailable until then.
So, it's pretty much a happy wrap up here. I did survive a close call a month ago with casual handling, but then I survived farm & cattle life well before OSHA got involved, a few vehicle rollovers, etc. Thank God for good genes, cowboy upbringing, and Marine Corp training.
I'm a little hesitant to post here again and bump this back up as this is quickly becoming old news, but I did want to share that my doctor is very happy with my progress and has no objections to me diving now. :cheering:
I will continue the Coumadin every day without fail, the blood test exactly every two weeks, the support sock almost every day, and propping my leg up as much as possible. I will have my daughter and son-in-law down to do some tree pruning and anything else that could increase any risk for a cut or strain, and I will postpone Deco Training until January. My Instructor is having leg surgery this week anyway and will be unavailable until then.
So, it's pretty much a happy wrap up here. I did survive a close call a month ago with casual handling, but then I survived farm & cattle life well before OSHA got involved, a few vehicle rollovers, etc. Thank God for good genes, cowboy upbringing, and Marine Corp training.
gert7to3
Contributor
- Messages
- 1,167
- Reaction score
- 120
- # of dives
- 200 - 499
A quick note about Coumadin. It can make you slightly more predisposed to age related changes in your eyes. It's a good idea to have an eye exam now as you are at the start of Coumadin therapy.
You should monitor your vision by alternately covering each eye and becoming familiar with the visual field of each eye. Try reading with each eye separately. Check to see if there is distortion, like you see a door edge of a kitchen cabinet with a bend in it. These could be signs that there a leaking blood vessel, possibly aggravated by Coumadin therapy. Don't assume if you notice a change in your vision that it is something benign like a cataract or you need new glasses.
I don't want to alarm you, just to caution you about this.
You should monitor your vision by alternately covering each eye and becoming familiar with the visual field of each eye. Try reading with each eye separately. Check to see if there is distortion, like you see a door edge of a kitchen cabinet with a bend in it. These could be signs that there a leaking blood vessel, possibly aggravated by Coumadin therapy. Don't assume if you notice a change in your vision that it is something benign like a cataract or you need new glasses.
I don't want to alarm you, just to caution you about this.
OP
- Messages
- 54,123
- Reaction score
- 8,270
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
Thanks - just had my eye exam and glasses updated. I'll give my eye doc call.gert7to3:
I'll know more in another month, but recovery seems to be going well. Just accepting new limitations for now. :05:
Excellent! When are you coming over?DandyDon:
OP
- Messages
- 54,123
- Reaction score
- 8,270
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
Well, 71 days into treatment of coumadin and support stocking and my leg looks almost normal, my physician is happy with the progress, and he has released me to start shaping up at the Y - and boy could I use it. Did a couple of 80 ft dives at 5,000 ft elevation last weekend - no problems toting tanks, gear, etc. Close call that it was, I'm grateful to be in much better shape today.
Thanks again for your support, y'all...!!
Did a couple of 80 ft dives at 5,000 ft elevation last weekend - no problems toting tanks, gear, etc. Close call that it was, I'm grateful to be in much better shape today.Thanks again for your support, y'all...!!
- Messages
- 1,372
- Reaction score
- 4
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
Hey Don,
Keep a good watch for any recurring symptoms. The second one is much worse than the first. My second one in the same leg occured over a dozen years later. I think one of the problems was that I had gained a bunch of weight. The third one happened just five years after that. Now I am on low dose coumadin for the rest of my life. A bit of a PITA, but it is worth the precaution.
None of my doctors have told me to stop diving. As long as I have my blood checked every 4-6 weeks and watch my weight, then it does not seem to be a problem.
Good luck to you.
Keep a good watch for any recurring symptoms. The second one is much worse than the first. My second one in the same leg occured over a dozen years later. I think one of the problems was that I had gained a bunch of weight. The third one happened just five years after that. Now I am on low dose coumadin for the rest of my life. A bit of a PITA, but it is worth the precaution.
None of my doctors have told me to stop diving. As long as I have my blood checked every 4-6 weeks and watch my weight, then it does not seem to be a problem.
Good luck to you.
OP
- Messages
- 54,123
- Reaction score
- 8,270
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
<moved here from another thread>
Took coumadin for 3-1/2 months. He considered me cleared.
For more on DVT and diving, I'd suggest talking with Marty at DAN, like I did.
My DVT happened before a dive trip, actually, and our best guess was too long sitting on a hard chair at a computer. Took a lot of aspiring over the weekend of diving, just in case, when I should have been in ER.
Took coumadin for 3-1/2 months. He considered me cleared.
For more on DVT and diving, I'd suggest talking with Marty at DAN, like I did.
RonFrank
Contributor
Glad to hear you are making progress.
You should be back in the water soon.
We'll be thinking about you while at the Hole this weekend.
You should be back in the water soon.
We'll be thinking about you while at the Hole this weekend.
I had a small DVT six weeks after real major surgery and then a big one a few weeks afer that that put me back in the hospital - they thought it as going to break loose. I started diving again about four months into a six month treatment of rat poison. Thought I would have barotrauma from routine ascents but it didn't happen. No dive related complications I could see. The whole DVT thing was bad news. I'm much more reluctant to fly as a result. Have big flight on Thursday to east coast - probably longest flight since going off the meds.
Jim
Jim
Similar threads
