How are blood clots diagnosed?

Diagnosing a blood clot and treating one are separate steps, though pages on the topic often sit side by side. This page covers only the diagnosis question.

The answer first

medlineplus.gov states: "To find out if you have one or more blood clots, your health care provider: Will do a physical exam." The physical exam is the first step the source names, and the colon in the sentence shows that the list carries on from there.

The detail that separates diagnosis from treatment

NHLBI, NIH keeps two separate pages on venous thromboembolism, one on diagnosis and one on treatment. Reading them as a pair makes the order plain, with finding out coming before deciding what to do. MedlinePlus also has an encyclopedia entry, Blood clots, for a general account.

Taking clot questions to your provider

If you are in Tinley Park, Mokena or New Lenox and have questions about a possible clot, bring them to your own provider. The source above names a physical exam as the first step. For clot-related reading from another publisher, my.clevelandclinic.org has a page on deep vein thrombosis.

The follow-up question the source raises is what the remaining steps on that list are, which your provider can walk through with you.