A businessman in his late forties is sitting in coach on an airplane. The seating is quite tight and he can't seem to get comfortable. Suddenly, his leg starts to tingle. Thinking that his leg just fell asleep, he starts to massage it. As he rubs, he notices a slight pain growing. He decides to squeeze between the back of a chair and another passenger, to walk it off. Within his first steps, he notices the pain increase. He looks up the aisle and sees the flight attendant moving closer with her food cart. To not be in the way, he sits back down and tries to ignore the pain. He attempts to read a magazine, but can't concentrate on the article. His toes start to tingle and his calf tightens up. Curious, he stands up to head toward the restroom. The pain worsens, so he sits back down. The passenger next to him becomes irritated of his constant moving about. The businessman decides to investigate the problem in his seat. Removing his shoe and sock, he wiggles his toes at the discomfort, and pulls up his pant leg. The passenger next to him gasps. His leg had turned a red hue and swelled to twice its size. He thinks to himself how could this have happened? In fact, there is an explanation. The symptoms are a result of Deep Vein Thrombosis, or DVT.
             Deep Vein Thrombosis is more common than many might think. Every year in the United States 600,000 are newly diagnosed and about 200,000 every year will die because of DVT complications (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute). What is DTV? Deep Vein Thrombosis is a blood clot deep inside the body. These veins are blood vessels that help prevent backward flow in the veins. The blood is pushed through the legs and arms when muscles contract. Deposits of red blood cells and clotting elements can build up in the vein. Having all this build up it creates a blood clot and as the clot grows it continues to block the blood from flowing. Clots usually happen in the legs and arms...