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“Superficial vein insufficiencies, where we just described. Now there’s other conditions that affect superficial veins and those are thrombosis or clotting. And it is a similar process that deep vein thrombosis by just affecting the shallow veins, a diagnosis of superficial vein clot does not portend the same ominous prognosis as a deep vein thrombosis, but it can be meaningful in many ways. And I’m going to go over a few of those. When you go to a hospital and you need hospital care, everybody requires an IV, an intravenous catheter that can give you fluids and medication. These veins in your elbow, they are shallow veins. You can see them under your skin. They are called the cephalic or basilic veins. And that’s why usually nurses can put a catheter in order to infuse the medications or foods that you need. So those veins can be damaged by that catheter being placed.
And so once the nurse removes the IV, sometimes patients go home and they develop this cord like structure here that is somewhat tender and red, and they come back to the hospital. Well, what is this? That’s likely a clot or superficial vein clot that was caused by trauma. Very much as a trauma in your veins in the legs can cause a clot is the same in this area. And that’s an often cost for these clots to happen when it’s a clot that is provoked such as the placement of an IV, really, there’s not much to worry about. You can just give some warm compresses locally to diminish the pain, elevation, some over the counter anti-inflammatories like Motrin or Tylenol, and then wait. And this condition usually resolves.”
