Tips to remember while flying?
After reading an article in READER'S DIGEST the other day at the airport (don't judge), I discovered that there are some serious risks that I'm taking every time I fly. Yes of course, the obvious one (flying can sometimes be very dangerous and result in well...accidents) but the other risk (the one I did not know about) is blood clots.
For those of you who know who RON MACLEAN the article was about his wife and how as a woman in her 50's, in shape, healthy (she ran marathons for crying out LOUD) had taken a plan in April from Vietnam to Toronto and only in November did she suffer complications from the blood clot that had moved from her CALF to her HEART. A very scary situation indeed and actually, without giving the story away went to the hospital and had a very life threathening 40 minutes were doctors had no idea what was going on. Why was she weak? Not breathing? Close to heart failure? Real danger of losing her life.
In short (SPOILER HERE) her doctors DID figure out what was wrong and quickly (with very little time) saved her but it was really by luck since her signs for PE (pulmonary embolism, which comes after getting clots) were not visible/showing at all (and what is crazy is that 70 percent of patients who die from pulmonary embolism die within the first hour - YIKES! Think about it, travel time to hospital, getting admitted, doctors looking at files, WHOA! An hour can go by fast!))
If you get a chance, take a quick PEAK at the article
OR
keep reading....
WHAT DID I LEARN??? The following (if a traveler or travelling this summer/fall/ever - PAY ATTENTION!)
IMPORTANT NOTE: FOUR hours or more can trigger the formation of blood clothes, known as a deep-vein thrombosis, the condition that precedes a pulmonary embolism. Here how to avoid them;
1) While on the plan, a few minutes of low-intensity activity every two hours will boost circulation. Consider a quick walk up and down the aisle, or simple flex-and-point exercise with your toes ( I am one of those who always gets up but only after three movies...OPPS!)
2) A single 81 milligramme dosage of Aspirin a half hour before boarding can help thin the blood and help prevent blood clotting.
3) STAY hydrated! (DONE AND DONE!) Drink fluids regularly during flight and go easy on the booze (WHAT!?! Boooo!).
4) Watch your calves months following the trip. Any swelling could be the telltale sign of a clot (Did you know this? I DID NOT KNOW THIS - kinda scary, don't you think?).
Just keeping it real people, just trying to keep it real.
I hate to say it by I think Ms.Wells is slowly coming back from summer recess.
UGH!
After reading an article in READER'S DIGEST the other day at the airport (don't judge), I discovered that there are some serious risks that I'm taking every time I fly. Yes of course, the obvious one (flying can sometimes be very dangerous and result in well...accidents) but the other risk (the one I did not know about) is blood clots.
For those of you who know who RON MACLEAN the article was about his wife and how as a woman in her 50's, in shape, healthy (she ran marathons for crying out LOUD) had taken a plan in April from Vietnam to Toronto and only in November did she suffer complications from the blood clot that had moved from her CALF to her HEART. A very scary situation indeed and actually, without giving the story away went to the hospital and had a very life threathening 40 minutes were doctors had no idea what was going on. Why was she weak? Not breathing? Close to heart failure? Real danger of losing her life.
In short (SPOILER HERE) her doctors DID figure out what was wrong and quickly (with very little time) saved her but it was really by luck since her signs for PE (pulmonary embolism, which comes after getting clots) were not visible/showing at all (and what is crazy is that 70 percent of patients who die from pulmonary embolism die within the first hour - YIKES! Think about it, travel time to hospital, getting admitted, doctors looking at files, WHOA! An hour can go by fast!))
If you get a chance, take a quick PEAK at the article
OR
keep reading....
WHAT DID I LEARN??? The following (if a traveler or travelling this summer/fall/ever - PAY ATTENTION!)
IMPORTANT NOTE: FOUR hours or more can trigger the formation of blood clothes, known as a deep-vein thrombosis, the condition that precedes a pulmonary embolism. Here how to avoid them;
1) While on the plan, a few minutes of low-intensity activity every two hours will boost circulation. Consider a quick walk up and down the aisle, or simple flex-and-point exercise with your toes ( I am one of those who always gets up but only after three movies...OPPS!)
2) A single 81 milligramme dosage of Aspirin a half hour before boarding can help thin the blood and help prevent blood clotting.
3) STAY hydrated! (DONE AND DONE!) Drink fluids regularly during flight and go easy on the booze (WHAT!?! Boooo!).
4) Watch your calves months following the trip. Any swelling could be the telltale sign of a clot (Did you know this? I DID NOT KNOW THIS - kinda scary, don't you think?).
Just keeping it real people, just trying to keep it real.
I hate to say it by I think Ms.Wells is slowly coming back from summer recess.
UGH!
No comments:
Post a Comment