SAN ANTONIO – KSAT viewers asked, “Does the new coronavirus cause blood clots and strokes?”
Dr. Lyssa Ochoa, a vascular surgeon in San Antonio, said there is a link.
“It’s interesting because we’re worried about respiratory symptoms, but what we’re finding is that these COVID patients are, in medical terms, they’re called hypercoagulable – they’re prone to blood clots,” Ochoa said.
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Ochoa said doctors are seeing strokes in some young COVID-19 patients and blood clots in patients’ legs.
Clots in the leg are called deep venous thrombosis. They can lead to pulmonary embolism, which is when a clot breaks off and goes into a person’s lungs, Ochoa said.
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“These are life-threatening complications,” Ochoa said.
She said doctors are working together to determine the best treatments for COVID-19 patients, which may include putting them on blood thinners or partial blood thinners.
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Watch Dr. Ochoa answer the question in the video clip above, and click here to watch the full interview with Dr. Ochoa.
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Every weekday night during the 6 p.m. broadcast news and during the streaming KSAT News at Nine, we will have experts on to answer your questions and give the latest information about COVID-19.
Find more answers and ask your own questions on our SAQ page.
