Diseases of Veins, Lymphatic Vessels and Lymph Nodes: Lymphedema, Varicose Veins, Hemorrhoid, Deep Vein Thrombosis, Budd-Chiari Syndrome

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 23. Chapters: Lymphedema, Varicose veins, Hemorrhoid, Deep vein thrombosis, Budd-Chiari syndrome, Post-thrombotic syndrome, Esophageal varices, Lymphadenopathy, Superior vena cava syndrome, Gastric varices, Paget-Schroetter disease, Thrombophlebitis, Lymphangitis, Portacaval anastomosis, Portal vein thrombosis, Congenital lymphedema, Vein graft disease, Venous insufficiency ulceration, Axillary lymphadenopathy, Vein disorders. Excerpt: Deep vein thrombosis (also known as deep venous thrombosis and usually abbreviated as DVT) is the formation of a blood clot (thrombus) in a deep vein. It is a form of thrombophlebitis (inflammation of a vein with clot formation). Deep vein thrombosis commonly affects the leg veins (such as the femoral vein or the popliteal vein) or the deep veins of the pelvis. Occasionally the veins of the arm are affected (if spontaneous, this is known as Paget-Schrotter disease). A DVT can occur without symptoms, but in many cases the affected extremity will be painful, swollen, red, and warm, and the superficial veins may be engorged. The most serious complication of a DVT is that the clot could dislodge and travel to the lungs, which is called a pulmonary embolism (PE). DVT is a medical emergency, so, all limb swellings, however trivial, should be regarded as a DVT until proven otherwise. Untreated lower extremity DVT has a 3% PE-related mortality rate. Deaths associated with upper extremity DVT are extremely rare. A late complication of DVT is the post-thrombotic syndrome, which can manifest itself as edema, pain or discomfort and skin problems. According to Virchow's triad, venous thrombosis occurs via three mechanisms: decreased flow rate of the blood, damage to the blood vessel wall and an increased tendency of the blood to clot (hypercoagulability). Several medical conditions can lead to DVT, such as co...