ASH Decision Aids

After being treated for your first unprovoked blood clot, should you take blood thinners indefinitely or stop?

Blood clots can form in the deep veins (called deep vein thrombosis or DVT) or in the lung (called pulmonary embolism or PE). Blood clots can be treated with drugs, such as “blood thinners” (also called anticoagulants). Blood thinners do not actually thin your blood; rather, blood thinners increase the time it takes for your blood to clot. This stops existing blood clots from becoming worse. Following treatment of a blood clot, adults will continue to take blood thinners to prevent new blood clots from developing.

This tool is designed to help you make an informed decision about how long to continue taking blood thinners to prevent another blood clot.

Options

Take blood thinners indefinitely (forever, and not stop)
Stop taking blood thinners after a defined duration (such as 6 to 12 months).

Timeline of the decision to be made

Who is this tool for?

You have a new DVT or PE that was diagnosed as unprovoked, meaning:
- You do not have any risk factors for blood clots, such as major surgery in past 3 months, long bed rest or inability to move (3 days or more), hormone use (birth control pills, hormone replacement), pregnancy, or specific long term diseases such as cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, autoimmune disorder, or chronic infection; and/or
- It is not known why you had a DVT or PE.
You have been taking blood thinners for about 3 to 6 months to treat DVT or PE
You are not at high risk for bleeding complications.

If you are unsure whether this decision aid is for you, it will be important to check with your healthcare provider.

How can you use this tool?

You may review the information to make a decision about how long to continue taking blood thinners before talking with your healthcare provider.
You may review the information to prepare for a discussion about how long to continue taking blood thinners with your healthcare provider and make a decision together.
You may also exit this tool now and leave the decision to your healthcare provider.

Remember: you may quit this decision aid at any time. When you continue with this decision aid you may skip any step by clicking "next" in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. You may also go back to the previous step by clicking "back".

How can this tool help you?

This interactive decision aid will help you:

Understand the benefits and harms of taking blood thinners indefinitely compared to stopping

Think about how important the different benefits and drawbacks are for you

Make a final decision about how long to continue taking blood thinners.