Various studies have been conducted within and away from the medical field regarding the prevention of deep vein thrombosis and the conditions that can occur after its development. One intervention that has been researched that nurses are able to provide to their patients to help with this type of condition is by equipping their lower extremities with graduated compression stockings.
Problem
Deep vein thrombosis, often abbreviated as DVT, is a potentially life-threatening condition where a blood clot forms within a vein that is deep within the body. These blood clots, or thrombi, have potential to form in people who are bound to sitting still for a long period of time, such as patients after surgical procedures or accidents, along with patients …show more content…
According to Sachdeva, Dalton, Amaragiri, and Lees (2014), GCS work by exerting “graded circumferential pressure distally to proximally and, when combined with muscular activity in the limb, are thought to displace blood from the superficial to the deep venous system via the perforating veins. It is argued that this effectively increases the velocity and volume of flow in the deep system thereby potentially preventing thrombosis.” So, since the blood is flowing from the feet back up the legs more easily due to the pressure gradient that lessens the more proximal the stockings are, there is less chance for blood to sit and be able to form a …show more content…
If the DVT were to break loose from the vessel wall on which it formed, then the patient is at risk of other harmful conditions, including pulmonary embolism. Depending on the size of the clot, PE can become fatal due to restricting the circulation of oxygen throughout the body. From reviewing the three articles, it can be concluded that knee-length graduated compression stockings are an effective tool to use in the fight against DVT. There is no difference measured in the effectiveness of thigh-length versus knee-length GCS, so knee-length should be used to increase patient compliance due to less cost and greater ease of application. GCS can be harmful, but with the correct assessment prior to application and correct fitting stockings, they should purely be beneficial when mixed with sufficient teaching from the
Problem
Deep vein thrombosis, often abbreviated as DVT, is a potentially life-threatening condition where a blood clot forms within a vein that is deep within the body. These blood clots, or thrombi, have potential to form in people who are bound to sitting still for a long period of time, such as patients after surgical procedures or accidents, along with patients …show more content…
According to Sachdeva, Dalton, Amaragiri, and Lees (2014), GCS work by exerting “graded circumferential pressure distally to proximally and, when combined with muscular activity in the limb, are thought to displace blood from the superficial to the deep venous system via the perforating veins. It is argued that this effectively increases the velocity and volume of flow in the deep system thereby potentially preventing thrombosis.” So, since the blood is flowing from the feet back up the legs more easily due to the pressure gradient that lessens the more proximal the stockings are, there is less chance for blood to sit and be able to form a …show more content…
If the DVT were to break loose from the vessel wall on which it formed, then the patient is at risk of other harmful conditions, including pulmonary embolism. Depending on the size of the clot, PE can become fatal due to restricting the circulation of oxygen throughout the body. From reviewing the three articles, it can be concluded that knee-length graduated compression stockings are an effective tool to use in the fight against DVT. There is no difference measured in the effectiveness of thigh-length versus knee-length GCS, so knee-length should be used to increase patient compliance due to less cost and greater ease of application. GCS can be harmful, but with the correct assessment prior to application and correct fitting stockings, they should purely be beneficial when mixed with sufficient teaching from the