The diagnosis for each was chronic deep-vein thrombosis. Both men were referred to Dr. Patricia Thorpe of the Creighton University medical faculty and St. Joseph Hospital staff. Creighton studies have found significantly better results from the clot dissolvers than with standard therapy, which uses anticoagulants, said Dr. Thorpe, chief of vascular interventional radiology. Legs feel better. There is less pain and swelling, and fewer recurrences of acute episodes.
People can have a better lifestyle after therapy.
Since about 1990, more than 80 patients with deep-vein thrombosis, from 12 to 90 years old, have been treated at St. Joseph with the clot dissolver urokinase. Thousands of people have clotted leg veins, but some do not suspect it, Dr. Thorpe said. Symptoms sometimes are ignored or attributed to something such as muscle strain. She recommends that people consult a physician if they repeatedly experience leg cramps or swelling that either comes and goes or is constant. Being sick in bed for an extended period, undergoing recent surgery, taking long car or plane rides and experiencing a previous episode of clotting can contribute to the formation of clots.