Want more iVillage? Sign up for our
Newsletters
Deep Vein Thrombosis - Home Treatment
SYMPTOMS & TREATMENTS
- Topic Overview
-
Health Tools
- Cause
- Symptoms
- What Happens
- What Increases Your Risk
- When To Call a Doctor
- Exams and Tests
- Treatment Overview
- Prevention
- Home Treatment
- Medications
- Surgery
- Other Treatment
- Other Places To Get Help
- References
- Credits
Home treatment for deep vein thrombosis focuses on safety while taking anticoagulants, such as warfarin, because of the higher risk for bleeding.
Anticoagulant treatment for a first episode of deep vein thrombosis usually lasts for at least 3 months. Anticoagulant medicines are heparin and warfarin. When you take anticoagulants, you need to take extra steps to avoid bleeding problems.
Heparin. If you take heparin:
Warfarin. If you take warfarin:
- Get regular blood tests.
- Prevent falls and injuries.
- Eat a steady diet, and pay attention to foods that contain vitamin K.
- Tell your doctors about all other medicines and vitamins that you take.
For more information, see:
Elevating your leg or wearing
compression stockings may also help reduce the pain
and swelling that can occur with deep vein thrombosis. See a slideshow about how to put on compression stockings 
.
Your doctor may recommend that you take walks 5 or 6 times a day, if possible. Walking may help reduce the pain and swelling that can occur with deep vein thrombosis.
Even if you are healthy and have a low risk of blood clots, sitting still for a long flight or road trip raises your risk of getting blood clots. If you already have a blood clot risk, prolonged sitting raises your risk even more. Learn about preventing blood clots from long periods of travel.
If you are already at high risk for deep vein thrombosis, talk to your doctor before taking a long trip.
| By: | Healthwise Staff | Last Revised: January 5, 2010 |
| Medical Review: | E. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine Jeffrey S. Ginsberg, MD - Hematology | |
© 1995-2011 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.
Welcome to Care Circle, an exclusive tool to help you take care of yourself and your loved ones. Here's how it works:
- Create profiles for yourself and your loved ones.
- Select the topics and conditions that interest each of you.
- Get customized news updates, original content, tools, and expert advice for each Care Circle member delivered directly to your personalized homepage.
The information you input is strictly private; you choose who has access to your Care Circle.
How do I add myself or someone else to my care circle?
Click on "Add someone." Fill out the short profile. Choose an avatar. Select the topics and conditions that interest this person from the pulldown menu. You can select as many as you want, but you must choose at least one. Click on "Add Someone" again. You should start getting updates immediately.
How do I save content to my Care Circle?
Click on "Manage My Care Circle." Select the tab of the person for whom you're saving content. Put your cursor over the piece of content that you want to save; a disk icon will appear in the righthand corner. Click on the disk and the piece of content will be moved to a save folder.
How do I add additional topics and conditions for someone in my Care Circle?
Click on "Manage My Care Circle." Select the tab for the person whose preferences you'd like to update. Under "Add More to Follow," select additional topics and conditions.
How do I delete topics and conditions for someone in my Care Circle?
Click on "Manage My Care Circle." Select the tab for the person whose preferences you'd like to update. Under "Follows," scroll over the topic or condition you want to delete. An "X" should appear on the righthand side. Click on the "X" and the topic or condition will be deleted from the list.
To manage your Care Circle, Please
Sign In.
from
- Facebook is now fueling organ donations
- Military women and suicide: Home safe but not sound
- Still in gear: Injuries don’t stop veterans on 100-day bike trek
- Ask Jenna: I've hit a weight loss plateau. What do I do?
- He poses in a tutu to laugh in face of wife's cancer
- After chemo hair loss, 'henna crowns' help heal
The iVillage Network