Duration of incapacity to work

Whether a thrombosis results in partial or complete incapacity to work depends on the type of work and the severity of the illness. In principle, the doctor treating the patient should always make a recommendation.Shortly after a fibrinolysis (thrombus dissolution) or surgery, the patient is ill. People who perform work that is unfavorable for anticoagulation (for example stuntmen, heavy labor, construction work) should not continue their work or be employed in another position at the workplace. However, long periods of sitting should also be avoided. Special information can also be provided by patient training courses organized by health insurance companies and some hospitals.

Preventing thromboses

In everyday life you can do a few things yourself to prevent thrombosis in the leg. The most important point here is sufficient exercise. Especially for people with office jobs, or people who spend a lot of time standing around, it is important to exercise regularly.

Movement that strains the leg muscles is most likely to be recommended, for example walking or walking. Support stockings or compression bandages can also be integrated into everyday life to reduce the risk of thrombosis. Whatever you do, you should always drink enough so that your fluid balance remains balanced.

If there are hereditary risks, such as in thrombophilia, medication to inhibit coagulation must be used. In addition to heparin, coumarin derivatives such as Marcumar® are also administered. Under this medication, regular blood tests must be carried out by a doctor, as heparin and coumarins increase the risk of bleeding.

Exercise is important because it increases blood flow and promotes the so-called muscle pump. During this process, the muscles exert a healthy pressure on the vessels by contracting. Exercise is therefore a good prophylaxis against thrombosis. During thrombosis, however, the leg must not be moved strongly. It should be elevated and immobilized.

How do you recognize a thrombosis in your leg?

Since deep vein thrombosis is the most common type of thrombosis, the symptoms are described here. In 50% of cases, deep vein thrombosis occurs without symptoms. Unfortunately, only about 10% of all thromboses show a typical three-way constellation: the affected leg is swollen, bluish and the patient feels a dull pain.

Other symptoms include a feeling of tension or heaviness, the affected leg is warmer than the healthy leg and the veins are more visible on the skin. If the thrombus is in the lungs, patients complain of sudden shortness of breath, dizziness or weakness. Sometimes such patients also faint.

They breathe faster and stronger and have chest pain. A dreaded complication is the occlusion of all veins in one leg. This can occur, for example, if the thrombosis is not treated for too long (several hours or days). Here the swelling becomes so severe that the arterial vessels (those with the oxygen-rich blood) are also squeezed and the leg no longer receives enough oxygen. The leg is then at risk of dying off and therefore an emergency operation should be performed very quickly to clear the blocked vessels.