What is a blood clot?

Blood clotting is a normal process of the body to stop excessive bleeding when a blood vessel is injured.

Click here to watch a short video on the formation
of blood clots

Sometimes blood clots form abnormally within a blood vessel. In some cases the clot becomes large enough to block the blood flow.

The medical term for development of an abnormal blood clot is thrombosis.

Sometimes all or part of a blood clot breaks off and travels to other parts of the body. This is called an embolism.

Read further to understand more about thrombosis and embolism, and who is at risk.

Deep Vein Thrombosis

A deep vein thrombosis or DVT is a blood clot that forms in a deep vein
DVT mostly occurs in the deep veins of the legs, but can also occur in other parts of the body such as the veins of the arms or the abdomen

Not everyone with DVT will experience symptoms. When symptoms are present they may include:

Swelling of the leg or arm (sometimes it occurs suddenly)
Pain or tenderness in the leg that may only be felt when standing or walking
Feeling of increased warmth in the area of the leg or arm that is swollen or that hurts
Redness or discolouration of the skin

A pulmonary embolism or PE is a blood clot in a pulmonary (lung) vessel
A PE occurs when a blood clot breaks off, travels through the blood stream and lodges in the lung, blocking the blood flow

Symptoms of PE can include:

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