Abstract
Inferior vena cava thrombosis is a potentially life-threatening condition in which a clot or thrombus forms in the major vessel that returns blood to the heart and lungs. The primary concern is that of potentially life-threatening pulmonary emboli, or clots traveling to the lung. Risk factors vary greatly, but all fall into the general categories of hypercoagulable state, venous injury, and venous stasis. Signs and symptoms vary with the extent of thrombus, and more than half of all patients remain asymptomatic until pulmonary embolism occurs. Although treatment for cases of localized inferior vena cava thrombosis is fairly straightforward with an excellent prognosis, the variability in and sometimes lack of signs, symptoms, and risk factors render isolated cases of inferior vena cava thrombosis difficult to detect prior to complications from pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis.