Blood clot after heart attack

[Ree72]

Hi, I have just joined this community after my Husbands heart attack.

He had the attack monday 31st and had 2 stents inserted, he was meant to be released from hospital Friday but they are now keeping him in probably until Wednesday. This is because he has a blood clot and he is now on warfarin.

I had presumed that the clot was due to the stents as I know this can be a complication but Dh says it is the chamber of the heart and is from the original heart attack. Can anyone offer any advise as to if this is normal as I feel so scared and when I google it only really refers to clots because of the stent.

Thanks so much

[siouxbee19]

I am not a medical professional and I would definitely ask his doctor this question instead of Google, it's so easy to get stressed by all the misinformation floating around on there.

Having said that, I have not had a heart attack but I do have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy which makes my EKG appear as though I have; I have AFib, and other benign and not-so-benign arrhythmias. I also have an implanted defibrillator.

Back in 2018, I developed an unprovoked blood clot in my left leg, from ankle to groin, totally occluded behind my left knee. I also had bilateral pulmonary emboli due to pieces of the clot breaking off and traveling to my lungs. I was put on Warfarin up until this year when I switched to Eliquis.

Although I did not have this problem, I was told that clots in the heart can form from a piece of plaque breaking off and the body forms a clot in the process, this can lodge in your heart and cause a heart attack or stroke. Having AFib can also cause clots to form in the heart, and can lead to heart attacks and strokes, and as you mentioned, stents can also cause them.

So long story short, clots can happen for other reasons besides the stents.

Best wishes to you both and may your husband have a speedy recovery...

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! I see absolutely no reason to doubt your husband's doctor. After all the original heart attack was caused by a clot in a narrowed artery. Do you know which artery/arteries were stented? Warfarin (other drugs are available) is an effective and safe drug for clearing and preventing clots.

The thing now is to focus on getting your husband home and asking his team about rehab (probably not for this week) rather than the clot of which they are aware and are dealing with.

You might find it useful to talk with the BHF nurses for reassurance and advice. In general try and avoid Google - a source of much out of date and mis- information.

[Ree72 in reply to MichaelJH]

Thank you for your replies, I know I should avoid google even told my Husband not too do it so I really should know better and should listen to my own advise!! It has been hard as there are no visits allowed and the only information I have had has come from my husband, haven't wanted to quiz him about what the doctors are telling him.

Waiting for the doctors to see him today, the nurse did say that the warfarin was working his INR levels had gone up to 2.8 yesterday so he could probably be discharged today and have his warfarin monitored at a anticoagulant clinic so keeping fingers crossed.

Thank you