About 5 years ago I had 2 pulmonary embolisms. The doctors think it was from the Ortho Evra patch, since I was only 27, but I’m adopted and have no family history. I was on coumadin for 6 months and then I was off any treatment. Anyway, on Monday I got in a fairly serious car accident and I’m covered with major bruising. With no insurance and unemployed, I can’t go to the doctor. With my past history, I’m just wondering if all the bruises heighten my risk for more embolisms.
I’m sure you knew what people would say , namely , that you should go see a doc. (No insurance - how about medicaid or a public hosp?)
Now that that’s out of the way, if you’ve made it since Monday with just bruising you’re probably OK. I wouldn’t think that cutaneous bruising by itself would put you at risk for a PE. If you were laid up and not moving around per usual, or getting dehydrated for some reason, then maybe. Having said that, deep tissue bruising, particularly in a leg, might put you at risk, by the mass effect of a hematoma interfering with venous blood flow. Again, a med consult might be informative, but I doubt they would tell you anything practical other than to stay active and drink plenty of fluids, which they always say anyway. Maybe one of our family docs on the board can set us straight dope though.
Real-life medical questions go in IMHO where you can receive opinions.
samclem, moderator
No.
Trauma is a risk factor for developing thomoboembolism as is having a past history of DVT or PE. But bruising is unrelated.