Swelling purplish left forearm 2 months post insertion

Hello from a newbie ..

wonder if anything had an experience similar to mine ..

after a nightmare with the original 3 lead CRT insertion that left me with 2 holes in pericardia / ER visit due to stabbing chest pains/  I had another surgery replacing 2 leads . They accessed my subclavical vein through the previous incision and left with an area that 7 weeks after still looks inflamed with a huge gross scab.  However the main problem is the left forearm that turns purplish , swells and its painfull every time it is hanging vertically or just below the heart level . I can't perform any simplest everyday tasks - cooking, washing dishes or even walking around - i have to hold my left elbow - sling doesnt provide enough support .    I had two ultrasounds of the subclavical area and also a venogram with contrast over the 3 last weeks - to eliminate the  DVT   - nothing was found - above rhe elbow.  The technician that did the last sonogram told me they cant check veins below elbow because they're too narrow ../?/

However between the 1'st ultrasound and the 2'nd I was rushed to ER with whats turned out to be a    multiple blood clots in my lungs - aka pullmonary embolism.  3 days in hospital on Heparin iv , now home on blood thinners /  .

doctors in ICU ran additional venogram and concluded that PROBABLY the blood clots from the subclavical vein traveled to the lungs and my arm now will get better .

well - it didnt . I m afraid what else is going to happen after what suppossed to be a simple procedure of PM insertion.

Anyone else with a bluish swollen arm and possible advice ?

i must be the 0.05% statistics for possible complications that just all happened to one person 😱

Your site is great btw , so many wise people posting here !

2 Comments

Arm swelling

by Deak - 2017-11-16 10:58:02

I to have swelling in my left arm and purple in color. I went to the er and test showed a blood clot in the arm. I was told that it happens sometimes when a pacemaker is installed. Told not to worry and was given a scrip for a blood thinner and sent home. It has been 5 days and swelling is still there. I guess it takes time to work

subclavian vein thrombosis

by Selwyn - 2017-11-17 06:58:49

Hi Mama2,

I am sorry to hear of your distressing difficulties. You have had more than enough to cope with and now you appear to have some disability 7 weeks after the presumed subclavian vein blood clot ( this must have been the case, given the pulmonary embolus). About 1-3% after PM insertion  get clots that produce symptoms.

The prognosis is not that good having fallen into the small % with residual symptoms. However,  there is still time for improvement over the next few weeks.Physiotherapy may help. You should be working hard to improve your  arm circulation with a physiotherapist at present. 

Some physicians put stents in the vein to improve flow in the arm.

If you want to see the literature concerning this,  the following article has plenty of medical publications and references for further reading on the subject.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11936-011-0113-1

I think if you are having difficulty coping with symptoms in the future, and they are not resolving, you should be having a medical discussion re. stenting of the vein. This will not be without risk. 

You really are very unlucky. My sympathy.  Subclavian vein thrombosis is  not common ( though well known about with PM insertion), and residual symptoms can occur in small minority.  There are people, though, offering treatment.

Best wishes,

Selwyn

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As for my pacemaker (almost 7 years old) I like to think of it in the terms of the old Timex commercial - takes a licking and keeps on ticking.