A reader writes:
I am a practicing general/trauma surgeon here in Cleveland. Hillary Clinton's blood clot (or "deep venous thrombosis") is almost certainly related to her recent closed head injury. Trauma patients, particularly those with significant head or spinal trauma, are considered high risk for the development of these clots. The fact that Mrs Clinton developed a clot a few years ago additionally raises her risk portfolio. We see this all the time in medical/trauma practice. Head injuries alter the coagulation parameters of the body in unpredictable, potentially deleterious ways. As a result of this, I would expect her to require anticoagulation therapy for the rest of her life.
The Althouse response is hysterical on so many levels. The part where she writes – " Was it her brain (recently concussed)? Was it her leg (where she had a blood clot back in 1998)? The former is a big deal, the latter, not so much. Why not specify the site, since it make such a big difference, medically? " – is about as ignorant as it gets. A blood clot in the leg is extraordinarily dangerous. Those clots have a propensity for breaking off and traveling to the main arteries supplying the lungs where you can, you know, die instantly.
(Photo: A view of New York Presbyterian Hospital, where US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been hospitalized, on December, 31, 2012. The latest health scare for the globe-trotting Clinton will likely keep her out of the public eye a bit longer, just as she prepares to step down after four years as America's top diplomat. Clinton, 65, fell ill with a stomach bug on her return from a trip to Europe earlier this month that caused the former first lady to become severely dehydrated and faint, suffering a concussion. By Mehdi Taamallah/AFP/Getty Images)
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