Has anyone else had a suspected blood clot in pregnancy or have any experience or info on one?
My coronary consultant says that i have tested positive for a blood clot but my obs consultant wont allow an x ray due to baby.
Has anyone had an x ray on heart/lung are during pregnancy?
Just after any experience really as my concerns are along side my heart murmer and missing heart valve a blood clot could be life threatening and i already have a 1 year old at home(sounds awful but she has to be my main priority). they are keen to deliiver early to limit risk but i am also concerned at too early due to complications with baby etc.

XXXX

UPDATE

Well,last night i got taken to a&e due to being unable to breath at all and blacking out.
I was seen by the obs who told me all the risks of the two different scans to check for blood clots.
The VQ-this basically had a high risk of increased childhood cancer for baby BUT was lower risk of cancer for me
The ct and dye had a higher increase of risk for me but much less risk to babe. . .so this is what i went for.
It came back with damage to my lungs but no clots and i have never been more relieved in my life because they had told me if i had a clot my baby would of been delivered by the weekend as they would not give me ant coags whilst preg due to risk factor.

I also had other tests which show i have quite severe asthma,my lungs have a low oxygen transfer.
They have concluded that the attacts are the baby(his sheer size-he is very big)pushing into my lungs-this combined with the heart murmer and reduced oxygen causes my bp to drop very low.

I have to have heart check ups every 12 months and also due to the risk of cancer i will be checked out more regulary.

I am sooooooooooo happy to be home with my little girl and happy my son is safe-even if he is causing trouble,lol.xxxx

[Modified by: LovingmybabyNbump on 04 November 2009 22:43:52 ]

what a difficult situation you are in hun. I have no experience but wanted to send you ((((huge hugs)))) again - you put up with so much and are still such a positive person. Hope all goes well hun xx

Hi, yes I had a chest x-ray when I was 18 weeks, I was admitted into hospital with a suspected blood clot as I was struggling with my breathing quite badly, I was told the x-ray was perfectly safe to have as I had a screen placed over my bump to protect babe, I also had lots of other tests done to check the heart etc and was reasurred that everything I had done was perfectly safe for the baby. Turns out I didn't have a blood clot but was diagnosed with asthma and was told all the tests etc had to be carried out though to rule this out.
Hope everything goes well for you hun. x

Dannii. x
33+2

My baby is too big to have the screen plus he is right against my lungs so i think thats why he is refusing.
I have tested positive for a blood clot, i am thinking my black outs,breathlessness etc is proba combination of low bp,low iron,missing valve heart murmer etc(lol i am a medical dictionary).

I just feek concerned as the only treatments etc have been discussed after pregnancy. . .and i at 25wks(tomorrow) i am not happy with them taking him out so soon. . . though obviously if my life is in danger i will go with them
Hoping to go to 30 weeks,

Elaine-i dont think its all sunk in babe-its all just words to me,my family are in panic mode,mum has been here all day and left an hour ago and has rung 6 times to check i am ok.xxx

oh hun, its shock, in a way its better that way. You are in mummy mode too - you are not thinking of yourself, just your babies wich is really admirable. Just take things easy - I know its hard with a toddler but as harsh as it sounds let your family do the worrying for now. love to you and the fam chick xxxx

I am so lucky mum has done all my cleaning and taken care of ruby for me,i cant move out of the chair without struggling to breath,even talking is a struggle right now. so even though i am desperate to do things i physically cant-pathetic lump i am.

I have mum on speed dial incase i black out and the neighbour has a key and keeps checking on me-feel such a burden.
xxxx

How are things with you? U and oh ok?

thats what mums are for! You would do the same for Rubs and Joeseph! and you are NOT a pathetic lump! You are seriously ill! and I am sure your neighbours feel happy to be able to help, you are not a burden hun!

Me and OH are the same, you know, just the same

Sickness still bad but the pills are helping, had another bleed so off for a scan on Sunday. What will be, will be as they say.

Now you make sure you rest up missus! Im TELLING you to! Take care

love ya loads chick xxxxx

O no not another bleed, i have bled loads with Joseph and he is fine so hopefully your the same babe(i know bleedings not nice) but its not always bad.
Let me know how you get on-email me your number cause i was sooo worried about you before and had to rely on poor tracey.

Sorry things are the same with oh-hopefully he will grow up soon-men can be such nobs.xxx
love to you boys and bump(which i am convinced is a lady).xxz

So sorry to hear what you're going through. Are there not treatments they can try during your pregnancy? - my Mum had a DVT when she was pregnant with my little sis, and a friend of mine has had them in all three of her pregnancies I think, and they were treated - might be different if the clot is in the lung though I suppose. Because of my Mum's history (other DVTs as well as during pregnancy) I was put on heparin injections during my pregancy as a precaution, although I'd never actually had a problem myself.

They have said that they wont give me an anti coag whilst pregnant due to not being able to control any bleeding internally for me and baby.
(oc is playing a part as far as i can make out).

They seem to think the clot is in my lung-some have said said just one and others have implied more than one-basically quite confused and just waiting.
Were they all treated with a heparin whilst pregnant?xxx

hello

i have some experience of this,
the radiologist would not perform an xray as it would be inconclusive, a CT scan would be used to prove/rule out PE (blood clot) however you would not be allowed this either, what is reccomended is a VQ scan, or that is what i have seen used

can i ask how he has tested you, they can do a blood test called a d-dimer which can give you a % of licklyness but those are really not that accurate and a scan would always be done to confirm.

usually a person would be started on anticoag meds but if i remember rightly they assess your risk in pregnancy and may offer heparin as an alternative until delivery (anticoag meds are used for 3 months for clots)

hope that helps a little x

Thanks piggy pops.
can i ask what VQ scan is?
I have had 2 d-dimers and the first was inconclusive and the second positive-i have been told in pregnancy this can make them inaccurate however they feel due to symptoms etc that a blood clot is the most likely although i am not convinced.
I still am concerned because obviously they have to warn me of the danger and with my other problems i am really struggling,even sat here breathing is awfully tiring and a struggle,

xxx

A lung ventilation/perfusion scan, or VQ scan, is a test that measures air and blood flow in your lungs.A VQ scan involves two types of scans: ventilation and perfusion. The ventilation scan shows where air flows in your lungs. The perfusion scan shows where blood flows in your lungs.

Both scans use radioisotopes (a low-risk radioactive substance). For the ventilation scan, you inhale a small amount of radioisotope gas. For the perfusion scan, the radioisotopes are injected into a vein in your arm.

i think as you are struggling you need to get a second opinion, if you are not getting enough oxygen then neither is your baby, i am suprised they have let you home without treatment.

I'm also surprised you're at home. I have some knowledge of the science side of things, not a huge amount, but I think Piggypops has explained it quite well. D-dimers are an indicator of a clot, not proof.

My mum was definitley put on heparin during pregnancy but not sure about my friend. I was also prescibed Clexane, which is a form of heparin, during pregnancy and I didn't have a clot. I assume it's the additional complications of your OC making them reluctant to give you this.

Do you feel things have been explained to you by your doctors? If not, definitely ask again

Take care x

I have had a suspected DVT, but not in pregnancy. They did a doppler scan, but the queried clot was in my leg, so I guess it would be different for one on the lung.

I know someone on another forum whose daughter is pg and had a suspected clot on the lung and they did a VQ scan. I know that her medical team were discussing the possibility of putting her on clexane for the remainder of the pregnancy, is there a medical reason they wouldn't give you this?

I hope they can give you some answers soon, the uncertainty must be so distressing for you.

Hi there,

Sorry to hear you are having such a bad time of things.

I presume the test they have done already to indicate a clot is a blood test called a D-Dimer. Whilst having this raised does point towards a clot, it also can be raised for a number of other issues such as infection, tissue damage etc. Therefore, it cannot be used to diagnose a clot in the lungs/legs on it's own.

The next step would be to do a VQ scan which can be done in pregnancy safely. It allows the Drs to see if there are any areas of the lungs that do not get a good supply of oxygen or blood flow which again would lead to believe there is a clot there.

Mrs Setters is correct, a low weighted heparin can be used in pregnancy provided you have regular blood tests to make sure your clotting levels are ok. Just to say though, it must be stopped 24 hours before an epidural!

Good Luck.

X

Hi g/c here but when i was pg with my 3rd lo i had 2 blood clots they both went to my eyes and the docs said i was lucky, i was about 33 weeks pg and i has to have a chest x-ray they put about 4 of the vest over me i could hardly breath they were that heavy and then i had to have ct scan , mri scan and a ecg and echo and they suspected a hole in my heart but could say for sure asthey had to do a TOE after i had delivered and they set me of at 37 weeks and also when i had all the tests done was put on asperin to thin my blood i had ds2 at 37 weeks then went for my TOE a couple of weeks later and they found a medium sized hole in the atrium of my heart which isnt as common as the ventricular.. They were going to close it but i chose not to have it closed asd it has not bothered me for 29 yrs only when i wads pg for the 3rd time and they said i could do that asd long as i didnt have anymore children as a pg could lead to heart attack or stroke for me so i got sterilised. but me and baby were fine from the chest x-ray. Hope you are feeling a little better today and what a rough time you are having sending you big ((hugs)) hun take care.
vikki xx

Thanks for your replies, no one has mentioned a VQ to me,i am assuming all hospitals have this facility?
They did not let me home, i discharged myself against their advice HOWEVER i have a little girl at home and they could not give me a definate time of stay so i was unable to plan childcare etc.

yes i was told that you can get a + result on the d-dimer but it wasnt always accurate especially in pregnancy this again was another reason for my self discharge-they didnt seem to have a plan.

They were good at explaining BUT i really struggled to understand the doctors accent,my midwife is off next week but my gp has rang to say i need to see her monday so i am hoping to get some answers then.

Appreciate your replies and will ask abotu the VQ.xxx

Yup been there done that, with my 3rd pregnancy, I was due to start Heparin Injections at 20wks but I didn't make it that far; I got to 17wks and had to be rushed in cos I had another Pulmory Embolism Had my first one 10 days post partum with eldest DD as well as a DVT, turns out I have a *thrombosis, and this time it was a massive one from all accounts too!(Actually how I'm still alive has come into question!) They gave me a VQ scan and this confirmed it, I was in hospital for 5 days even thou I had two little ones at home(at the time my eldest DD was 5 and my DD2 was 13mths) my OH had to cope best he could.

*A condition called Factor V Lieden(meaning it causes clots, if pregnant, fly, have surgery etc)

Claire
xxxx

How did they treat your clot when pregnant?
When was your baby born?
xxx

Am I lucky then to've been given Clexane as a preventative measure? I've never even had a blood clot although I have risk factors - my consultant advisxed I start Clexane immediately (8 weeks when I saw her), or at the very least have it for 6 weeks after the birth. She did tell me about not having an epidural on it, but she said 12 hours, and told me repeatedly not to inject if I thought I was in labour - as it was I was induced so she said not to have it on the morning I was booked in.

I can't believe they were willing to leave you until 20 weeks without giving you anything with Factor V Leiden - I have low protein C which I don't think is as serious.