Venous Stasis
Venostasis, or venous stasis, is a condition of slow blood flow in the veins, usually of the legs.
Causes
Causes of venous stasis include:
- Chronic venous insufficiency.
- Congestive heart failure.
- Long periods of immobility that can be encountered from driving, flying, bed rest/hospitalization, or having an orthopedic cast. Recommendations by clinicians to reduce venous stasis and DVT/PE often encourage increasing walking, calf exercises, and intermittent pneumatic compression when possible.
Complications
Potential complications of venous stasis are:
- Venous ulcers
- Blood clot formation in veins (venous thrombosis), as with the deep veins of the legs (deep vein thrombosis or DVT), potentially indicating thrombosis prophylaxis.
See also
- Virchow's triad