View Full Version : Blood clot fear
At the end of January I was experiencing some mild calf pain. About a week a passed by and the pain had almost entirely subsided but I decided to get it checked anyway. My Dr. ordered a D dimer test and later called me that day and said my D dimer was elevated at a 7.7 (with 5.2 being normal). Given the calf pain she told me to go to the ER to get an ultrasound of my leg. I did that and my ultrasound came back negative. 2 days later I had a follow up appointment and they checked my d dimer again which had dropped to 5.7. The Dr. reassured me that I was okay and sent me home. About a week later I experienced some chest pain when inhaling (mild pain) and my calf pain on and off. I went back to the Dr. who sent me for a chest CT with contrast. My chest CT came back clean, however they did not re-test my d dimer and they did not re-test my leg. My chest pain has subsided. I think it was probably due to anxiety as I have been very worried about this. I am still concerned about my calf pain which is pretty dull with a throb of worse pain every once in a while. I have a follow up on this coming Monday, however I am fairly certain they are giving me a clean bill of health. I am concerned about my d dimer being elevated wondering if there could be a clot somewhere in my body, particularly in my calf (and the US missed it?). Could anxiety cause pain in the calf/ behind the knee?
Thank you. I appreciate your time.
PASchoolSyndrome
12-02-17, 23:19
D-Dimers are a very non-specific test. They tend to be elevated anytime you aren't feeling well - which is why they are only done in low risk patients to rule-out a PE. The fact that is was elevated yet you had a clear CT scan is fantastic news!
Make sure to express your fears to your doctor about the blood clot - but chances are if they didn't see it then it's probably not there. Its hard but try and not let your anxiety get the best of you if multiple tests and scans say you're fine!
Thanks. I have expressed my fear to my NP. She keeps telling me I'm fine. I asked her to do another d dimer but she does not want to "chase numbers" and cause me any worry. She said it could be elevated due to my birth control a number of other reasons. It stinks bc I know a negative d dimer would relieve my anxiety. I almost drove myself to the ER today but I talked myself down. Damn d dimer test!
Sphincterclench
13-02-17, 00:02
It stinks bc I know a negative d dimer would relieve my anxiety
would it? really? None of the other clean tests seem to have done that
If your anything like me there would always remain that little niggle of doubt that would creep in when you werent looking.
would it? really? None of the other clean tests seem to have done that
Wisely said! :)
Hello all, I am still expiriencingetting pain in my calf and behind my knee. My dr. Said it's probably muscle tension at this point. The muscle doesn't seem tense. I am just so afraid of having a blood clot. I try to be rational but I can't help but be concerned about the pain. Anyone out there experience anything like this before ?
would it? really? None of the other clean tests seem to have done that
If your anything like me there would always remain that little niggle of doubt that would creep in when you werent looking.
I totally agree. Everyone on here says the same thing. And guess what we all think what if's ( what if the doctor didn't find it or test the right area, what if it was too small to notice, what if the doctor is wrong or the test is wrong, it's always what if's with anxiety suffers). Not trying to be mean but I do the same thing. So I know that a clean test won't change much and if it did you would move on to something else. But sometimes the test is what we really need to prove how crazy our thinking really is.
---------- Post added at 07:42 ---------- Previous post was at 07:40 ----------
Hello all, I am still expiriencingetting pain in my calf and behind my knee. My dr. Said it's probably muscle tension at this point. The muscle doesn't seem tense. I am just so afraid of having a blood clot. I try to be rational but I can't help but be concerned about the pain. Anyone out there experience anything like this before ?
I have gotten pain and soreness in both my calfs. And I get twitches all over
I am going through the exact same thing, well minus calf pain.
I have had chronic cough and wheezing then last week, out of the blue, I got back pain. Within 2 days, that back pain was like a stab right under my bra strap every time I took a deep breath, and there was pain when I was laying down. The pain started subsiding after 2 days, but I made an appointment with the doc. anyway because of all of the symptoms, Once she heard about the pain, she tested the D-dimer, then I got a call Wed it was elevated and to go get a CT.
The CT turned out normal- no evidence of clots. I still have a very mild ache in that spot in the lung, but it doesn't hurt anywhere near as much and there is no pain when I breathe in. They sent me on my merry way, no follow up.
I am surmising that there probably was a clot that passed on its own and that's why I am no longer in pain. I did ask the nurse about the lingering ache or tenderness, and she said clots can leave a little bruising as they can hurt the lung quite a bit.
Not going to lie- I do still have the "what if" thoughts, like what if they missed it and there's a clot somewhere else in my body?
But, the pain is gone or really lessened and that corroborates the CT scan so what's there to fear?
It seems like your chest pain is also gone, so you you have no reason to fear anything either. I think you can take this as an opportunity to act fast IF you notice something really out of sorts (I had no idea the pain I felt in my lung was an ER situation). If you have to ask yourself if anxiety is causing the pain, the answer is probably yes. It's hard as a hypochondriac to know what sensations to trust, but you have to fight for objectivity. My own rule of thumb is worry about it IF it gets worse and I am not second guessing, is this anxiety? Hope that helps!
I have personally suffered with clots in my lungs and clots in my deep veins and on Rivaroxaban & warfarin for the rest of my life ......You would not be typing messages if you had a clot in your lung (s) or if you had a DVT, its EXTREMELY painful if left untreated like they did to me for 2 months!
A D-Dimer is a non-specific test as I think has been mentioned - I assume they did an INR test and assumed that was normal?
I have similar symptoms. Electric zap pains in my legs for weeks now, behind my knee and in my calf, sometimes my thigh and feet. Sharp back and chest pains that come and go. A feeling of breathlessness, although this is probably anxiety. I have been to countless doctors and the ER twice and they all tell me a healthy 22 year old male like me will be ok. And it still scares the hell out of me because they never did a CT. my legs are driving me insane. The only thing that keeps me somewhat calm is that the pains haven't gotten worse, they're just persistent. Over a month of this now. :weep:
Kay, I'm fairly certain they didn't do a IRN test. Just a d dimer.
Angry, I'm sorry you're going through something similar. Have the dr.'s ran any tests for you? I know it's hard to trust them but we gotta try. Wow I need to practice what I preach lol.
I do have another question to put out there... can hyper focusing on a body part mimic pain. I think about my leg all the time. I even feel pain when I touch (lightly) parts of it. I wonder if it's bc all I do is think about it
Yes, hyperfocusing on an area of the body will make you feel every little blip that wouldn't even make it to the radar of a "normal" person and ALSO can inspire imagined pain. That's the worst part of hypochondria- you've got to work hard to separate out the real from the imagined, and you can't really trust yourself and your instincts. Try to redirect whenever you think about the leg and see if that makes a difference in how you feel.
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