In Paul's post about Dos and Don'ts of travel after clots, he recommended exercise during flights. As we traveled on lots of different airlines over the past three weeks, I thought I'd see what advice each of them gave about exercise. I couldn't find any advice given by three of the airlines we used, Jetstar, Air New Zealand and Easyjet. This is the advice I found from the … [Read more...]
Dos and Don’ts of travel – What Paul did
Just before we left for Copenhagen for the European Haematology congress, Paul wrote about the dos and don’ts of travel after clots. Paul has had multiple pulmonary emboli, including one that occurred on a flight, so flying is a particular concern of mine. Now we’re safely back in New Zealand, fighting jetlag, I thought you might be interested to discover which of his own … [Read more...]
The twelfth of never? How long do I need anticoagulants?
How long you need anticoagulants depends on the balance of risks between having a blood clot and bleeding and these will be different for each individual. Your specialist will decide the length of time anticoagulants are needed in your particular case. This is just a guide. But it includes song titles. And the links to the songs on YouTube. We’re kind that … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – Harry Potter and the venomous snake
We’ve arrived in the UK now. We flew into Luton airport so we could visit the nearby Warner Brothers Studio tour of the studios where Harry Potter was filmed. I’ve even found a tenuous link between the Harry Potter Tour and coagulation. And that is snakes! On the tour we met the Basilisk, the serpent of Slytherin, which Harry Potter killed in the book “the Chamber of … [Read more...]
Happy 100th Birthday Heparin!
It is one hundred years since the discovery of the blood thinning drug heparin, which is still used today. Jay McClean, who was a medical student at the time, presented a paper at the Society of the Normal and Pathological Physiology at the University of Pensylvania reporting his discovery of an anticoagulant extracted from liver, hence the name Heparin (Hepa meaning … [Read more...]
Live from European Haematology Conference – update on blood clots
I have just attended an interesting talk about superficial vein thrombosis at the European Haematology Association meeting in Copenhagen. First a bit about the meeting. 10,000 delegates; doctors, nurse and scientists Held each year in a different city in Europe Over 250 sessions covering all aspects of haematology from basic science to the latest clinical … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – Why don’t Polar bears get blood clots?
This week Angela and I are staying in Rovaniemi in North Finland on the Arctic Circle. Our hotel is beautiful with an arctic theme. Our bathroom has a large picture of a Polar bear in the shower and a small polar bear lying on our bed. Today we visited the Arktikum Museum which focuses on the ecology of the arctic, and I learnt some interesting things about the Polar … [Read more...]
Quiz – Old or New – What’s best for you?
If you’re taking anti-coagulant pills, you have a choice between warfarin or one of the New Oral Anti-Coagulants (NOAC) such as Pradaxa/dabigatran, Xarelto/rivaroxaban or Eliquis/apixaban. We’ve chosen Pradaxa/dabigatran as the representative of the NOACs for this quiz. How much do you know about their differences? Completing this quiz may help you realise why either one is … [Read more...]
Stopping anticoagulants – 5 life-threatening excuses
Around 30% of people started on a long-term anticoagulant have stopped taking it by three months. This is not merely missing a few tablets or reaching the end of the time you needed anticoagulants for, but deliberately stopping while you’re meant to be taking them. And of course once people are no longer anticoagulated they’re at risk of a life-threatening stroke (if they have … [Read more...]
Frivolous Friday – Urine uses: Have you used this?
You might wonder, what is the link between urine, blood clotting, and my trip to Sweden? All will be revealed as we take a closer look at our urine. Surprisingly urine contains an important chemical called urokinase, that breaks down blood clots. While researching this post I was surprised to find out that urine has been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. In an … [Read more...]