By Roberta Palmer, RN and Patty Kunze, BSN, RNC
So…a topic that was presented to The Rollin’ RNs involves taking blood thinners. One of our readers wanted our thoughts about how long she should stay on her blood thinner prescribed to treat a blood clot.
That’s a great question worth digging into but ultimately this is a question that needs to be discussed with your doctor. It’s a very important and individualized decision that will depend on some key factors such as:
- The location of the blood clot
- Why the clot formed (what risk factors contributed to your clot)
- An assessment of your risk for developing future clots if your blood thinner is stopped (what risk factors you have which may cause a clot recurrence)
- How you have tolerated the blood thinner and what your risk for bleeding is if you stay on a blood thinner.
- Are you still having frequent blood levels drawn per your physician’s orders?
Lets start with a little background on blood clots