Blood Clots Summary Normally, if you get hurt, your body forms a blood clot to stop the bleeding. Some people get too many clots or their blood clots abnormally. Many conditions can cause the blood to clot too much or prevent blood clots from dissolving properly. Risk factors for excessive blood clotting include Certain genetic disorders Atherosclerosis Diabetes Atrial fibrillation Overweight, obesity, and metabolic syndrome Some medicines Smoking Blood clots can form in, or travel to, the blood vessels in the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and limbs. A clot in the veins deep in the limbs is called deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVT usually affects the deep veins of the legs. If a blood clot in a deep vein breaks off and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs and blocks blood flow, the condition is called pulmonary embolism. Other complications of blood clots include stroke, heart attack, kidney problems and kidney failure, and pregnancy-related problems. Treatments for blood clots include blood thinners and other medicines. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Specifics Antiphospholipid Syndrome National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Cerebral and Sinus Vein Thrombosis American Heart Association Factor V Leiden Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Hypercoagulation American Academy of Family Physicians Thrombophilia and Hypercoagulability American Heart Association Thrombophlebitis Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute What Is Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome? National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute What Is Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation? National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Encyclopedia Antithrombin III blood test Cavernous sinus thrombosis Congenital antithrombin III deficiency Congenital protein C or S deficiency Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) Euglobulin lysis time Fibrin degradation products Fibrinogen Fibrinopeptide A blood test Lupus anticoagulants and antiphospholipid antibodies Partial thromboplastin time (PTT) Protein C Protein S Renal vein thrombosis Diagnosis and Tests Antithrombin Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Coagulation Factors Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry D-dimer Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Factor V Leiden Mutation and PT 20210 Mutation Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Fibrinogen Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Platelet Count American Association for Clinical Chemistry PT and INR Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry PTT Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Thrombin Time American Association for Clinical Chemistry Array Arterial embolism Blood clots Blood clotting D-dimer test Prothrombin time (PT) Superficial thrombophlebitis Thrombophlebitis Children Blood (For Parents) Nemours Foundation Start Here Blood Clots American Society of Hematology Blood Clots Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Blood Clots Radiological Society of North America How Blood Clots Merck & Co., Inc. Related Issues Blood Clots and Travel: What You Need to Know Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Blood Thinners: Can I Still Get Blood Clots? Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Important Information to Know When You Are Taking: Warfarin (Coumadin) and Vitamin K National Institutes of Health, Clinical Center Understand Your Risk for Excessive Blood Clotting American Heart Association Treatments and Therapies Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis Radiological Society of North America How Is Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Treated? National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute How Is Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation Treated? National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute How Is Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura Treated? National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute MedlinePlus: Blood Thinners National Library of Medicine Patient’s Guide to Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy American College of Chest Physicians Find an Expert Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Find a Hematologist American Society of Hematology National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Clinical Trials ClinicalTrials.gov: Embolism and Thrombosis National Institutes of Health ClinicalTrials.gov: Thrombophlebitis National Institutes of Health ClinicalTrials.gov: Venous Thrombosis National Institutes of Health Genetics Genetics Home Reference: antiphospholipid syndrome National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: clopidogrel resistance National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: factor V Leiden thrombophilia National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: hereditary antithrombin deficiency National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: protein C deficiency National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: protein S deficiency National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: prothrombin thrombophilia National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: von Willebrand disease National Library of Medicine Genetics Home Reference: warfarin resistance National Library of Medicine Learning about Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) National Human Genome Research Institute Learning about Factor V Leiden Thrombophilia National Human Genome Research Institute Women Postpartum Blood Clots Merck & Co., Inc. 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