If you’re planning on having a C-section soon, you will want to make sure that your doctor straps special inflating boots onto your legs that could lower your risk of a blood clot. These compression "boots" are already used for other major procedures, including hip replacements, and now new guidelines for obstetricians recommend that patients undergoing C-sections use them, too.
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) is a serious, yet silent threat, for pregnant women and thousands of others, too. DVT is called a "silent killer" as it usually starts out as simple leg pain, but is actually a blood clot that can quickly travel to the lungs and cause a Pulmonary Embolism.
Blood clots make headlines nearly every year after seemingly healthy people collapse after long flights or other prolonged activity. For example, tennis superstar Serena Williams was treated for clots in her legs after having foot surgery and then traveling across the country. Similarly, pregnancy is associated with a fourfold increase in the risk of a Pulmonary Embolism since pregnant women undergo major physiological changes during pregnancy, including decreased mobility, slower blood flow, and blood that clots more easily.
