By Lynne Adkins
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Removing blood clots in the leg may be a good choice for many patients.
Patients with leg clots are often treated with medicine, but new research shows that a minimally invasive procedure to remove the clot doesn’t increase the death rate and will decrease the risk of developing a painful post-treatment condition.
Dr. Riyaz Bashir, an interventional cardiovascular specialist at Temple University Hospital, says this give patients a choice.
“We can actually be able to have a meaningful discussion with the patient that these are the risks of taking the clots out and this is your risk of developing a post-thrombotic syndrome,” he says.
He adds that removing the clot does present a higher risk for bleeding issues.
