Surgery has risks. Cosmetic elective surgery needs to be as safe as we can make it. It is elective. Most of my patients are moms. Are you at risk?
DVT is a blood clot in your leg.
PE is a pulmonary embolus, when the clot dislodges and blocks part of your lung. The danger varies widely. A PE can be asymptomatic. A PE can impair your breathing or be painful. If big enough, a PE can kill you.
There are things we do to lower the risk.
- TED hose
- Sequential compression devices (SCDs are the squeezy booties we place on your legs at surgery)
- Positioning during surgery
- Anticoagulation (heparin, low molecular weight heparin shots, etc)
- Early ambulation
Many of these tendencies run in families. Things which you should be SURE to mention to your doctor, as they may indicate an increased risk: HAVE YOU OR ANYONE IN YOUR FAMILY had:
- DVT (deep vein thrombosis- a clot in your leg) or PE (pulmonary embolus)– esp with long plane flight, pregnancy, birth control pills, or previous surgery
- Blood thinners?
- Diagnosed with a blood clotting disorder?
- A disease called “purpura fulminans?”
- Diagnosed with lupus or other autoimmune disease?
- History of stroke?
- History of recurrent miscarriages?
If you have had any of these in you or your family, you may be at increased risk for having a blood disorder which causes you to clot more easily. This is something which you could go through your life and never know you had until you do something which causes a risk for DVT, like a surgery.
Regardless, basic steps should be taken to avoid things which increase your risk around surgery. One of these is simply getting out of bed three times or more a day and moving around. Clots form in the blood when you are not moving. The risk of DVT is highest for the first two weeks after surgery but remains elevated for a month (I warn patients of this, particularly when planning to travel after surgery on a long flight. Wear TED hose and get out of your seat and walk around every hour.).
Blood clots is the most common cause of death in plastic surgery patients. Inherited thrombophilic disorders are significant risk factors. Abdominoplasty and longer surgeries are higher risk. Take the above quiz. If any of your answers are yes, you should explore it further.