Ultrasound, Pregnancy And DVT

A fairly rare complication of pregnancy is DVT of the iliac veins, or lower extremity.  This occurs because of the extrinsic pressure effects of the uterus while gravid.  DVT in the ilacs and CFV can pose serious risks, especially if the DVT is occult.  Catastrophic incidents of pulmonary embolism have occurred following delivery.



"The appeal of using compression ultrasonography for diagnosing deep vein thrombosis in pregnant women is obvious: it is noninvasive, widely available, and does not expose the fetus to ionizing radiation," Chan and colleagues wrote. "However, generalizing results from studies involving men and nonpregnant women to pregnant women is problematic because of differences in clinical presentation and anatomic distribution of deep vein thromboses."

Thanks MEDPAGE

http://www.medpagetoday.com/Cardiology/VenousThrombosis/36837