Arterial thrombosis
| Thrombosis | |
|---|---|
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| Cyanosis of the lower right extremity, resulting from acute arterial thrombosis of the right leg (on the left side of the image) | |
| Classification and external resources | |
| Specialty | Vascular surgery |
| ICD-10 | I80-I82 |
| ICD-9-CM | 437.6, 453, 671.5, 671.9 |
| MeSH | D013927 |
Thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. When a blood vessel is injured, the body uses platelets (thrombocytes) and fibrin to form a blood clot to prevent blood loss. Even when a blood vessel is not injured, blood clots may form in the body under certain conditions. A clot, or a piece of the clot, that breaks free and begins to travel around the body is known as an embolus.
Thrombosis may occur in veins (venous thrombosis) or in arteries. Venous thrombosis leads to congestion of the affected part of the body, while arterial thrombosis (and rarely severe venous thrombosis) affects the blood supply and leads to damage of the tissue supplied by that artery (ischemia and necrosis). A piece of either an arterial or a venous thrombus can break off as an embolus which can travel through the circulation and lodge somewhere else as an embolism. This type of embolism is known as a thromboembolism. Complications can arise when a venous thromboembolism (commonly called a VTE) lodges in the lung as a pulmonary embolism. An arterial embolus may travel further down the affected blood vessel where it can lodge as an embolism.
Thrombosis is generally defined by the type of blood vessel affected (arterial or venous thrombosis) and the precise location of the blood vessel or the organ supplied by it.
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is the formation of a blood clot within a deep vein. It most commonly affects leg veins, such as the femoral vein. Three factors are important in the formation of a blood clot within a deep vein—these are the rate of blood flow, the thickness of the blood and qualities of the vessel wall. Classical signs of DVT include swelling, pain and redness of the affected area.
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