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Legally Reviewed by:

Jonathan Rosenfeld
J.D

March 2, 2023

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DVT Diagnosis LawsuitDeep venous thrombosis develops when blood clots form in the leg or thigh. Without effective treatment, the coagulated blood could move to the heart, lungs, or brain creating life-threatening conditions, including PE (pulmonary embolism).

Doctors often prescribe anticoagulant medications to prevent the formation of blood clots. However, this treatment is often ineffective, causing the patient to experience serious injury. Often, women taking birth control medications, including Yasmin (Yaz), are at a heightened risk of developing a blood clot.

Doctors and hospitals must recognize when patients are deemed high risk for blood clots and make reasonable efforts to monitor these patients for signs of a clot. The failure to promptly treat patients with DVT can have catastrophic consequences.

Hiring a Deep Vein Thrombosis Death Lawyer

The Chicago medical malpractice attorneys of Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC have represented numerous clients who developed life-threatening blood clots while under the care of a doctor or hospital. If you were injured while in a hospital through medical malpractice, call our phone number (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.

Our medical malpractice lawyers currently represent clients in the following localities: Cook County, DuPage County, Kane County, Will County, Peoria County, Naperville, and other cities in Chicagoland.

How DVTs are Diagnosed

Deep venous thrombosis occurs when a blood clot develops in the larger veins located in the lower leg or thigh and might not be accompanied by symptoms. Hospital patients at the most significant risk of developing blood clots have typically recently undergone a surgical procedure, suffered physical trauma, or are being treated for severe burns.

The development of clotting blood is a natural and integral part of the healing process in the human body. However, clots forming in the bloodstream rather than in the location of the injury can become problematic.

If the doctor fails to diagnose and treat DVT, the patient can suffer fatal consequences. Over time, a blood clot in the leg can become dislodged and travel to other areas of the body, posing the risk of heart attack, pulmonary embolism, or stroke if the clot reaches the heart, lungs, or brain.

Deep Vein Thrombosis Death FAQs

What can Happen if a DVT is Left Untreated?

Typically, blood clots can travel from the legs or other areas in the body to the lungs. Without proper medical treatment, a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) might create PE (pulmonary embolism) where a blood clot or clots block at least one artery in the lungs, causing immediate medical problems or death. Common symptoms associated with PE include shortness of breath, coughing, and chest pain.

Should I Elevate my leg With DVT?

Typically, the doctor or nursing staff in a hospital setting will evaluate the leg to determine the extent of swelling. Doctors might recommend that the patient wear compression stockings, go on short walks, and elevate the leg if possible to help heal the area. Elevating the leg and taking the other measures might significantly reduce the extent of the pain and swelling associated with DVT.

How can I Tell if I Have a Blood Clot in My leg?

Common symptoms associated with DVT include leg tenderness, leg pain, cramping (like a Charley horse), bluish or reddened skin discoloration, warmth to the touch, and swelling in one leg or arm. If left untreated, the DVT could create a pulmonary embolism that might result in an unexplained bloody mucous cough, shortness of breath, rapid heart rate, and deep sharp pain in the chest.

Will DVT go Away on its own?

Nearly all deep vein thrombosis cases affect only one leg or arm. In many incidents, mild cases tend to disappear when the blood clot dissolves without treatment.

However, some cases produce symptoms including pain, swelling, warmth to the touch, and discomfort. Patients must seek out immediate medical care if a potential DVT exists.

How Long Does it Take for a Blood Clot in the leg to Dissolve?

It is often weeks or months for the blood clots causing a DVT to dissolve completely. Over time, the DVT will typically become smaller as the blood clot slowly dissolves, decreasing the common symptoms, including discomfort, pain, and swelling.

Doctors will often prescribe anticoagulants (blood thinners) to treat deep vein thrombosis, especially clots that developed in the leg or arm’s large veins. Anticoagulants are helpful to prevent a clot from developing and leading to a pulmonary embolism or stroke. While anticoagulants are not effective in dissolving the clot, the drug can stop the blood clot from growing larger or diminish the development of new ones to form.

How Should I Sleep With a Blood Clot in my leg?

The nursing staff should raise the foot of the hospital bed to elevate your leg just a few inches higher than your hips. An elevated leg, along with the simple movement of the swollen appendage, can decrease the potential chance of developing a blood clot in the thigh or lower leg.

If you have rested in bed for a day or more, getting up and walking around could increase blood flow circulation in the leg, which might help the blood clot dissolve. Note that staying in bed for days after a surgical procedure could create an ideal environment for the development of a new blood clot or deep vein thrombosis.

Preventing a Deep Vein Thrombosis

One of the most common ways to treat blood clots is to administer blood-thinning medications, which break up existing clots and prevent the formation of others. If a patient is at high risk for the development of blood clots, these medications can be used as a preventative measure, but they do not come without risks of their own.

Patients on blood thinners should undergo regular blood monitoring to ensure that they are not at risk of excessive or uncontrolled bleeding. Other ways to prevent blood clots include the use of pressure socks or stockings. Socks and stockings do not allow blood to accumulate in the veins of the leg and increase blood flow and decrease the risk of DVT.

Surgical options are also available both to prevent and treat DVT. During these procedures, a filter is placed in the vein of the leg, or the clots are surgically removed and discarded to prevent them from moving to the lungs, heart, or brain.

Our Chicago DVT lawyers frequently represent patients who did not receive preventative care to prevent clots or who developed clots that doctors failed to diagnose, resulting in pulmonary embolism, heart attack, or stroke.

Injuries Resulting From Undiagnosed DVT

The failure to prevent or diagnose the development of a blood clot in time can have a severe impact on the health of the patient. The injuries that we have most commonly observed due to the failure to diagnose deep venous thrombosis include:

  • Pulmonary embolism. PE occurs when the blood clot reaches the lungs and causes shortness of breath, intense chest pain, and blood-streaked phlegm. The dangerous medical condition could be fatal if not treated in time.
  • Heart attack. The blockage of major blood vessels in the heart due to the migration of a blood clot can result in a heart attack. In some cases, emergency bypass surgery is required to restore blood flow around the clot.
  • Ischemic stroke due to cerebral embolism. About 87% of strokes occur due to blockages in the blood vessels of the brain, which doctors classify as ischemic strokes. Cerebral embolism is classified as a clot that moves to the brain rather than one that forms at the location of the blockage.

In May 2019, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first blood thinner (anticoagulant) for pediatric patients that were at least one month of age. Twenty-five years earlier in 1994, the FDA had initially approved the same medication (Fragmin – generic: dalteparin sodium) for adults to prevent the development of VTE (venous thromboembolism) in individuals with secondary complications including surgery, trauma, congenital heart disease, infection, cancer, or venous catheter.

Sample Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) Malpractice Awards From Across Illinois

$400,000 Settlement; Deep Vein Thrombosis Malpractice; Cook County, Illinois

The eighty-four-year-old victim with thrombosis lived in a nursing home and had a long history of vein issues and other problems. His doctors prescribed injectable Lovenox to treat his DVT that was injected subcutaneously on the abdomen.

On one occasion, a nurse applied the Lovenox directly into the muscle, creating an abdominal wall hematoma that caused bleeding, shock, and other problems. He later succumbed to the medical error. The victim estate lawyers filed a civil lawsuit against the nursing staff and facility. The lawsuit alleged the defendants’ negligence caused the man’s death and the related pain, loss, and expenses. The estate attorneys sought compensation for all the damages that the facility’s wrongful conduct caused. Both sides settled out of court for $400,000.

$5,511,566 Verdict; Deep Vein Thrombosis Malpractice; Cook County, Illinois

A young man in his 40s suffered injuries to his knee and saw an orthopedic doctor for diagnosis and treatment. The orthopedic physician adjusted his cast and ordered another surgery.

During intubation, the victim suffered a stroke when a deep vein thrombosis formed in his leg and travel to his lungs. The stroke sent him into shock, and he died a few days later. The estate’s law firm claimed the doctors were negligent and responsible for his wrongful death.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants should have noted the man’s pre-existing conditions and checked for signs of deep vein thrombosis. Their failure to accurately diagnose and treat the man led to his death and caused his damages. A jury agreed with the plaintiff’s case and awarded the victim’s estate over $5 million for lost wages, medical bills, lost society, grief, and other losses.

$2,500,000 Settlement; Deep Vein Thrombosis Malpractice; Cook County, Illinois

A man in his late 40s, with the wife and three children, worked as an engineer for a train company. The man experienced pain and numbness in his leg despite no traumatic event and sought out the advice and diagnostic care of a doctor.

The physician examined the man but never performed an ultrasound on his leg. Consequently, the physician misdiagnosed a deep vein thrombosis in the victim’s leg that progressed over the next two to three days. Eventually, the man suffered a pulmonary embolism and died when a clot blocked the major arteries in his lungs.

The victim surviving family members filed a civil lawsuit against the doctor and facility, claiming that the defendants’ negligence caused their loved one’s wrongful death. The defendant summarily filed a reply without any explanation of their egregious mistake.

The defendants decided to settle the case out of court rather than face the evidence in front of a judge and jury.

$2,000,000 Settlement; Deep Vein Thrombosis Malpractice; Cook County, Illinois

A man underwent an operation to repair tendons in his quads after suffering an injury at work. His doctors claimed they prescribed the patient medications that he did not take to avoid the formation of embolism. Over the next few weeks, the victim followed up with his doctors.

However, the doctors never identified any blood clots in’s follow-up appointments. He later suffered from a pulmonary embolism brought on by deep vein thrombosis in died. His surviving family members filed a lawsuit against the doctors and facility where he received treatment.

The lawsuit alleged that the man’s doctors should have checked for and prevented this development blood clots and that their failure to do so caused his wrongful death. The defendants argued that they cared for him reasonably, this was a known risk, and they did all that they could.

However, the veracity of these claims cannot be weighed because the plaintiff and defendants settled a few months later. The family received $2 million for their pain, loss, and expense.

Deep Vein Thrombosis Lawsuit Attorneys

The Chicago deep venous thrombosis attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC handle all medical malpractice cases on a contingency basis. This agreement ensures that we only collect attorneys’ fees after we’ve successfully negotiated a settlement or taken your case to court and won a judgment in your favor.

If we cannot collect compensation for you, we will not charge you a thing for our time or services.

Please contact our medical malpractice attorneys at (888) 424-5757 (toll-free phone call) or through the contact form for real-time assistance to speak with a lawyer. All discussions you have with our Chicago medical malpractice attorneys will remain confidential through an attorney-client relationship.

Please do not send sensitive information to our law office in a text message, email, or voicemail.

Client Reviews

Jonathan Rosenfeld was professionally objective, timely, and knowledgeable. Also, his advice was extremely effective regarding my case. In addition, Jonathan was understanding and patient pertaining to any of my questions or concerns. I was very happy with the end result and I highly recommend Jonathan Rosenfeld.

- Michonne Proulx

Extremely impressed with this law firm. They took control of a bad motorcycle crash that left my uncle seriously injured. Without any guarantee of a financial recovery, they went out and hired accident investigators and engineers to help prove how the accident happened. I am grateful that they worked on a contingency fee basis as there was no way we could have paid for these services on our own.

- Ethan Armstrong

Jonathan helped my family heal and get compensation after our child was suffered a life threatening injury at daycare. He was sympathetic and in constant contact with us letting us know all he knew every step of the way. We were so blessed to find Jonathan!

- Giulia

This lawyer really helped me get compensation for my motorcycle accident case. I know there is no way that I could have gotten anywhere near the amount that Mr. Rosenfeld was able to get to settle my case. Thank you.

- Daniel Kaim

Jonathan did a great job helping my family navigate through a lengthy lawsuit involving my grandmother's death in a nursing home. Through every step of the case, Jonathan kept my family informed of the progression of the case. Although our case eventually settled at a mediation, I really was impressed at how well prepared Jonathan was to take the case to trial.

- Lisa
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