Posted on 07/20/2004 11:20:08 AM PDT by EggsAckley
DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS
Background
The term "economy class syndrome" is used to describe a consequence of a medical condition known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) that occurs when people develop blood clots in the deep veins of their legs. It can happen when the blood does not move through the vessels adequately, for example, after sitting through long flights.
Symptoms can appear several weeks after flights as short as three hours. Such clots have been reported after automobile trips and even after evenings at the theatre, but long flights seem to pose a greater risk. The syndrome can result in anything from minor body pains and shortness of breath, to heart attacks and strokes.
A young English woman who died after a long return flight from the Sydney Olympics put the risk of deep vein thrombosis in the headlines. However, it should be noted that this problem is not new and has been evident for many years. It has come to prominence recently with the ever-increasing number of air travellers.
What is DVT?
Deep vein thrombosis is a blood clot in one of the deep veins usually in the calf or thigh. In this part of the body, blood moves quite slowly and when a clot occurs, it can get stuck in the vein blocking the blood supply. It isn't always immediately obvious (pain and swelling in the leg may be the first symptoms), and is not necessarily fatal. However, these blood clots can become dislodged and travel to the lungs or other areas, causing strokes, severe organ damage, or death.
Likely Cause
When you sit for a long time without contracting the muscles in your legs, blood can pool in the veins resulting in DVT. Tightly packed seating, such as that found in the economy class section of airlines, can restrict movement. It doesn't allow for a lot of room to move. However, it is the lack of movement rather than the lack of space that is the probable cause of DVT. Hence, business/first class travel need not necessarily provide the solution to this problem.
Doctors suspect that cramped leg room combined with dehydration interrupts the blood flow which causes clots, cutting off the supply of oxygen to various parts of the body. This may account for the results of one study which showed that 18% of sudden deaths on airplanes were due to blood clots in the lungs.
source: http://www.minerals.csiro.au/safety/ecs.htm
I wanted to, but they wouldn't let us out of our seats. These people need to be called on the carpet for this kind of treatment. Makes me wonder just how many people they HAVE killed this way.
Ouch. I think your situation was way worse than mine; at least we had the diversion of the tornado trying to twirl our plane around. Plus we were able to listen to the chatter on the headphones while they tried to put the airport back together and unscramble the now thousands of planes stuck on the ground and circling O'Hare.
Are you sure you weren't on Amtrak?
Well, there IS one thing you can do. Don't fly on United. I'm in the charter air carrier business now and we would never subject anyone to that kind of wait. Unfortunately it's way too expensive for most. I feel for you - I probably would go for being arrested by TSA before I sat for six hours.
When my mom died recently, I discovered that she had accrued more than 200,000 frequent flier miles. I didn't even attempt to acquire them; I hate United THAT much. The only reason I flew United THIS time was that a friend I was traveling with did the booking. Never again.
Have you priced JAL instead? It might be well worth your time to check out their price. I would fly JAL to Japan before any domestic carrier.
I've flown domestic to and from Japan, as well as JAL. I would recommend JAL over any domestic carrier, regardless of the price.
When spending 8-12 hours in a plane, the quality of service and attitude of the staff is priceless.
Thank you for the very thorough reply, Criminal Number 18F. It boggles my mind when I consider the logistics of all the different airports, air crews, ground crews and employees, security, air traffic control and the hundred of thousands of passengers that fly daily--on a good weather day. Throw in bad weather in any part of the country and it's a nightmare. My husband flies with one of the airlines that some here wish a quick demise. Flippant comments by clueless people get to me sometimes. The last thing you (I) would want my pilot husband to do, is carry a plane-load of passengers into an unsafe sky. Yes, I get frustrated with delays when I fly and I do think communication is the key to happier passengers, however, some people will not be happy, no matter the reasons for delays.
Yer Welcome........Stay safe !
I DID see that! She was only on the tarmac for an hour or so. Imagine four and a half! And as miserable as it was, I would never dream of heading for the cockpit to talk to the pilot. O'Leary is and always was an arrogant twit.
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