The Doctors TV Show: Deep Vein Thrombosis DVT: Bonnie Bernstein

The Doctors TV Show spoke about Deep Vein Thrombosis or DVT, which is a pain and swelling in your legs that all too often gets ignored – but this could be a deadly mistake.  Bonnie Bernstein, an ESPN Field Reporter and Sportscaster, was on The Drs TV Show to talk about her experience with Deep Vein Thrombosis.

The Drs: Deep Vein Thrombosis

Bonnie Bernstein told Dr Travis Stork that she thought she has a muscle pull and so she let it go for a week and just took some pain killers.  The next week when she was out on the field reporting, the top of her leg started throbbing.  So she went to the doctor the next day who was more like a physical therapist.  The following morning she woke up and her knee was red and swollen on both sides even though the doctor had not touched her knee, so the doctor told her to go to the hospital right away and she was diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis or DVT.  At the time, Bonnie Bernstein had not heard of DVT but more than 2 million people a year get it and more people die from DVT than from Breast Cancer and AIDS combined.

The Doctors: DVT

Dr Travis Stork said that DVT occurs in veins that are deep inside of your leg, not in the superficial veins where blood is drawn from.  You can get blood clots for a lot of reasons like if you are sedentary or on an airplane or even being pregnant can put you at risk.  Here are Bonnie Bernstein’s DVT Risk Factors:

Deep Vein Thrombosis Risk Factors

1.  Traveling a lot, especially on a plane.  Bonnie was traveling via plane 3-4 times per week for example.

2.  Family history can play a role in DVT.

3.  Hormone Therapy or Estrogen-Based Birth Control Pills can put you at a greater risk for getting DVT.

Dr Travis Stork said that in some people, blood clots form and stay in your legs and these are considered Isolated DVT.  However, the danger comes when the blood clots break away and travel through your body and up to your heart and into your lungs, because this can cause death – especially if it is not caught early on.

The Doctors TV: Deep Vein Thrombosis Symptoms

Dr Travis Stork said to look for the following DVT Symptoms:

– Leg Swelling

– Redness

– Pain

If you have these symptoms and you do  not recall being physically injured, you should have it diagnosed right away because DVT is preventable and fixable if found early enough.  DVT Treatments include  blood thinning treatments and even more basic things like doing ankle circles and moving your legs during long trips.