MayoClinic.com states that blood clotting is a normal physiological process essential for the body’s integrity. Blood clots cause mild to serious conditions, such as when they travel from the deep veins in the lower extremities where they develop, to the heart, lungs and brain. According to MayoClinic.com, blood clots occur in a variety of abnormal and even normal situations. Medications like hormone therapy, oral contraceptives and tamoxifen can also cause blood clots. Treatments for blood clots include anticoagulants and thrombolytic drugs. The introduction of filters, other non-invasive techniques and surgical methods are employed to cure, as well as prevent, the fatal consequences of blood clots.
Anticoagulants
Anticoagulants, also known as blood thinners, can be used in treating blood clots, according to MayoClinic.com. Through an interaction in the clotting process, these anticoagulants prevent the ability of blood to clot. MayoClinic.com reports that while they are unable to dissolve previously formed blood clots, they can prevent additional development of blood clots.
Heparin is the most commonly utilized anticoagulant and is given intravenously in most cases. Warfarin is a treatment taken in pill form. Anticoagulants can cause bleeding - a serious side effect. It is important to take these medications under the supervision of a physician. A person on blood clotting medication should be monitored regularly. MayoClinic.com indicates that pregnant women shouldn't take warfarin unless indicated and under the supervision of a physician, as it can be harmful to the fetus.
Thrombolytics and Filters
Thrombolytics are treatments for blood clots. MayoClinic.com refers to them as clotbusters because they break up blood clots. One example is tissue plasminogen activator, which can cause profuse bleeding, thus, it is only reserved for serious cases. According to MayoClinic.com, if medications such as anticoagulants and thrombolytics are contraindicated for use in persons with blood clots, one treatment is the use of filters. These filters are inserted into the vena cava, the largest vein in the body located in the abdomen that propels blood into the heart. The filter prevents clots that have shattered from lodging in the lungs.
Surgery and Angioplasty
According to Merck.com, if drugs are ineffective, surgery can be used in treating blood clots by removing the blood clot inside the veins. If blood clotting is persistent and increases risk of pulmonary embolism, by-pass surgery is done. Medline Plus states that a procedure, termed angioplasty, in which a stent is inserted into a vein to keep it open, can also be performed.
Rapid Lysis
A 2009 article in "Science Daily" describes a nonsurgical technique of rapid lysis for treating blood clots, as presented at the 32nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society of Interventional Radiology. It utilizes a clot-dissolving drug, combined with a clot removal device. The technique involves inserting a catheter into the vein where the blood clot exists. The device sprays the thrombolytic drug at high force and breaks the clot. The remnants of the clot are drawn into the catheter and siphoned out of the vein.
