Previous DVT after childbirth.. now 9 weeks pregnant and worried about possible PE?

[Butterflysunshine01]

Anyone else been in the same boat?six weeks after childbirth last year (may) I developed DVT in my leg and had to inject blood thinners for three months. I’m now 9 weeks pregnant and last Wednesday ended up in A&E as I felt abnormally breathless and had some chest pain. My D Dimer result came back moderately high (595) coupled with these symptoms doctors ordered an Xray and a VQ scan. I’ve also been on blood thinners preventative dose since Wednesday. I had the XRay today, it came back clear but apparently that doesn’t mean yes or no for a potential blood clot.
Now the VQ scan has come through for tomorrow and I’m feeling quite worried about it. I can’t breastfeed for 14 hours after it, now my baby is over a year so will be fine although bedtime will be a stress. I’m also worried at how radioactive I’ll be afterwards even holding my baby? And so worried about potential damage to the fetus even though they say it’s minimal. Now my symptoms are coming and going , and when I haven’t got the chest pain I feel like I’ve imagined it (even though I know I haven’t) but it’s hard to remember what I felt like when I was nine weeks pregnant before !! I know the weather is so hot too which could be adding to my breathlessness- but last night when it was cooler I had to stop and rest during a walk outside when normally I’m quite fit and push the pram miles. It just feels like occasionally I have to stop and take a bigger breath. I know I should have the scan to rule out a potential pulmonary embolism, but I’m just worried about causing harm to the unborn baby.

can’t help with the breastfeeding question but have you had your booking in appointment yet? I was told that as soon as I tested positive I needed to refer and get on blood thinners straight away for the length of pregnancy (was on from 9 weeks in my second and have been taking them since 5 weeks this time around).

VQ scans are safe in pregnancy.

Hiya yes I’ve had my booking in appointment only last week, she was quite casual about it and told me she had referred me to obstetrics (early August) even though I said the DvT clinic had recommended thinners in any future pregnancy. What dosage of thinners are you on?

D dimers are raised by pregnancy alone, so don’t worry that it was up (it is normal).
when you go for the v/q tomorrow ask somebody to speak to the on call obstetrician as the dosing and regimes are different compared to the “normal” management. Assuming you are between 50-90kg I would expect you to be out on enoxoparin 40mg for rest of the pregnancy and 6 weeks after. There is a big push to treat women in the first trimester as it is recognised that treatments often don’t start until later. Lots of people used to start after a scan confirmed a viable pregnancy, but there is less emphasis on that now.

I’m on 60mg enoxaparin. I personally wouldn’t be happy with the early August referral and would ask for the referral to be expedited (maybe even go through your GP if it’s a route available as I put a request in to mine for the referral prior to my booking appointment and was given the response “it’s normally the midwife that does that but I will see what I can do” with a consultant appointment by the end of the week to start the injections).

Thanks, the VQ scan came back clear. (Thankfully , but now in a right old panic about the amount of radiation I’ve exposed the fetus to!) but they are sorting the preventative thinners for me to start today, and referring to the consultant too , so that’s good.