Patient Stories: Charlie C.’s Blood Clots from Severe to Amazing

I have had coagulation issues and have been on blood thinners the majority of my life. A few weeks back, I needed spine surgery, and my surgeon chose to bridge my blood thinners to avoid complications. I had the spine surgery, and everything went well, but a couple of days postop, I woke up and realized that my legs were severely swollen. They looked like elephant legs!

RIA Nurse Practitioner Patty came and saw me at the hospital. She set me up with a plan to treat my deep vein thrombosis. I went home to Colorado Springs to wait for my appointment at RIA Endovascular. In the meantime, I started spiking fevers. I went to the emergency room, and they diagnosed me with sepsis and sent me straight back to Denver to be admitted to the hospital. They felt like the fevers were caused by the clots and something needed to be done right away.

Dr. Stahl came to see me. She was asked to rearrange her schedule and quickly get me on the interventional radiology table to remove the clots. Dr. Stahl said the procedure went great, and my symptoms quickly disappeared. I went back home to Colorado Springs and have not had any issues since then. It’s amazing to me that my legs have gotten back to their normal size. And this happened so quickly after the procedure! I’m a happy and surprised camper.

I didn’t even realize you could remove blood clots. I’ve had clots my whole life but never anything this severe. I did not know this technology existed. It’s absolutely amazing. My follow-up ultrasound shows that everything is going well.

I have had a great experience at the RIA Endovascular Clinic. I don’t have to worry about forgetting to schedule appointments, because they call me and set me up for any exam or follow-up appointment. Everyone there is so kind, and I have been treated very well. I can’t recommend them enough. They will continue to watch me closely, and I know they are there for me if anything changes in my condition. – Charlie C.