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Old December 10th 11, 01:40 AM
hempboy hempboy is offline
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First recorded activity by ParentingBanter: Dec 2011
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Zucca4 View Post
My lamaze teacher/labor nurse advised no calf massage at all during
pregnancy...something about the blood being heavier during pregnancy and
collecting in the lower body and massage unearthing a clot that could travel to
the lungs and.....you know the rest. I ran it by my doctor and he absolutley
agreed. I was a bit surprised as no one advised against this during the
beginning of my pregnancy
(now in week 38) and I had a ton of pedicures with very deep accupressure to my
calves. My doctor even went so far as to say that during a Charley Horse or
leg cramp not to massage the calf which is so instinctive for me. He said it
could be dangerous and I should just flex my foot or stand up.

I'm kind of annoyed it wasn't mentioned earlier on.

Anyway, thought I 'd share.

Lisa

The logic behind death by calf massage is certainly plausible, but it ends there. It's true that pregnancy put you at a hypercoagulable state, this is well documented (Pubmed ID:22145820 this article quotes a 6x increase risk in third trimester and a 22x increase risk 6 weeks postpartum). This is a risk multiplier, that's all. It DOES NOT GUARANTEE that you will have a clot. Obviously, if you smoke, AND take hormones, AND have cancer, your multipliers add up and you may actually get a clot.

Secondly, venous thromboembolisms are common, but they are classified under superficial venous thrombosis and deep vein thrombosis (DVT), the difference between the two are that DVTs occur ABOVE the trifurcation (back of leg opposite the knee). DVTs are generally NOT life threatening and account for a very small percentage of clots. But DVTs in some cases can extend upwards and throw clots into your lungs, at which point it is called a pulmonary embolism (PE). The DEATH RATE from PE is 20-30% if untreated, and only 2-3% if treated. But you could just as easily develop a pulmonary embolism spontaneously, WITHOUT a DVT. Your DVT/PE risk are evaluated with the Well's Criteria (YOU SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO USE THIS CRITERIA ON YOURSELF UNLESS YOU ARE AN EXPERIENCED CLINICIAN AS DOCTORS OFTEN MISUSES IT)

So,
1) the risk of clot during pregnancy is low
2) the risk of DVT is lower
3) the risk of PE from a DVT is even lower
4) the risk of pushing a clot from your leg into your lungs is super low, as people undergo this everyday in the hospital as part of ultrasound study to find out whether they have clots in their legs
5) the risk of dying from PE is 20-30% untreated, 2-3% if treated... I'm going to bet you will run to the ER if you start vomitting blood. I'm sure a few less intelligent mothers will ignore it.... there are all sorts of people after all.
6) Conclusion: clinically calf massage causing death through pulmonary embolus is astronomically low, you'll have better luck being run over by cars.



Also, I would ask you to refrain from posting anecdotal experiences that are not followed by any medical or scientific support. They only serve to mislead and confuse people on this forum as they have no clinical judgement nor medical experience. I am not a hematologist, so I don't even attempt to use the Well's Criteria on people unless their pre-test suspicion for venous thromboembolism is high.
The more stuff you post like this, the more people get confused. It also shows you have no sense of responsibility because you have not investigated it yourself. People will read this post and they will show up at their doctor's office asking a very very foolish question. This lowers the efficiency of our practices. I'm also not surprised when the other doctor tried to explain it he got very frustrated... sometimes patients want to believe they are going to die no matter what you say...

but you know, if you ever wanted to sound insane to your doctor, this would be a good way to do it.

Everyone, take on this example, every time you walk on carpet you generate static electricity, you pick up a charge, and sometimes you generate an ARC that zaps you. In a lightning storm, when you walk on carpet, you get hit by lightning and will die. Therefore you should not rub your hair or walk on carpet or rub vinyl strips as you can attract lightning to yourself and die. Does that make sense? Sure it does. Will it ever happen? ASTRONOMICAL!!!!!!

People who die of calf massages are so rare they would end up as case-reports on prominent medical journals, try to find them...

Last edited by hempboy : December 10th 11 at 01:45 AM.