IMMOBILITY, INJURY PLACE THOUSANDS AT RISK FOR 'ECONOMY CLASS SYNDROME'

  • Published
  • By Gail Cureton
  • Tricare Management Activity
FALLS CHURCH, Va. --  A difficult-to-detect ailment kills 200,000 people in the United States each year -- more than AIDS and breast cancer combined, according to Tricare officials. And if you take long journeys in planes, trains or automobiles, you could be at risk.

Yet few have heard of Deep Vein Thrombosis, which is a blood clot that forms in a vein deep in the body, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Most deep vein blood clots occur in the lower leg or thigh and often result from long periods of immobility, which can cause sluggish or slowed blood flow.

DVT has been dubbed the "economy class syndrome" because of its association with long flights in cramped conditions. However, it also can strike first class passengers, and has been known to afflict travelers going long distances in cars, trucks, buses and trains. Additionally, it can affect injured persons who are immobile for long periods of time.

Often the symptoms for DVT are subtle and can sometimes be mistaken for muscle strains, skin rashes or inflammation in the veins. Left untreated, DVT may cause severe or fatal complications such as pulmonary embolism or blood clotting in the lungs.

Immobility coupled with genetics contributed to NBC journalist David Bloom's death in 2003 at the age of 39. While embedded with the Army's Third Infantry Division in Iraq, the veteran reporter and the soldiers whose stories he told spent long periods of time riding in a cramped tank with little ability to move.

"Two nights before his death, David called on a satellite phone," said his wife Melanie Bloom. "He told me he was having some pain in his legs, but that it wasn't anything to worry about."

The seemingly insignificant pain was in fact a warning sign.

Anyone may develop DVT, but there are conditions that place some at higher risk (see "High-Risk Conditions"). Nearly half of all people diagnosed with DVT have no symptoms; however, there are some warning signs that require immediate attention (see "Warning Signs"). Contact your healthcare provider if you any symptoms or warning signs.

For more information on DVT, visit the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's Web site at www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Dvt DVT_Prevention.html.