What if the blood clot can not be dissolved?
Some patients arrive too late for the medicine to be able to dissolve the blood clot. In these cases we will usually recommend decompressing the subclavian vein for several reasons: the vein may occasionally clear the clot by itself and having the vein decompressed will reduce the chance of another clot forming; removing the compression may allow more space for the development of collateral veins for drainage of the arm; some patients will have compression of the other structures (nerves, or the subclavian artery) and decompression may help these avoid further injury. In these patients whose blood clot can not be dissolved, it is more common to experience the intermittent congestion and blue discoloration in the affected arm. Competitive athletes may find this restricting. Can surgery be avoided by using angioplasty and stenting? Angioplasty refers to the use of a small balloon to stretch the narrowed portion of the vein back to normal size. Angioplasty is not effective until the rib i
