why blood pools

[Radha]

does anyone know why the blood pools in the limbs, this is a big problems, causes painful, hot heavy hands and purple feet, is there any article any of you know of to explain why it happens and if there is any med to help it? thanks

radha

[persephone]

My understanding is that it's usuall the pooling of blood in the legsa that causes POTS- because the tachycardia is a reflex to the absence of blood in the upper half of the body- the heart tries to pump harder to get the blood back towards it.

I don't know if I've eve read about why it happens, but my rheumatologist told me that Ehlers Danlos, which many POTS sufferers are known to also have, can cause slackness in the veins and arteries, meaning that they can't constrict properly- so perhaps the slackness could cause the blood to end up pooling in the lower limbs and stay there? I guess if they don't constrict, then there are going to be problems with blood circulation, which seems logical to me, as so many of us have issues with being too cold etc.

but then again, I do medieval poetry, not medicine!

[ChiariMSwithPOTS]

Radha,

So sorry you're in the same boat as so many of us. It is really painful. I'm sitting here and my right calf is hurt.

Persephone,

Thanks for the description. I was wondering myself. I also have EDS. It makes sense now that you've explained it.

[Radha]

thanks for replying, are there any meds for EDS? to help the pooling?

radha

[persephone]

I don't know if it can be cured. I know that midodrine is supposed to help with the pooling because (I think) it encourages the veins to constrict, so pumps the blood back up.

But I'm not too sure- I was given midodrine to counter the pooling and it works for little spells but not very long when I take it.

I'd ask the Dr for more info!

I'm not a medic...but the more time passes, and the more I actually challenge and question my own specialists to be proved right, the more I'm thinking seriously about opting for a career in medicine. I could be an autonomic specialist and do loads of research!

Something to make you laugh- I told my c`ardiologist this and he put his hands over his face and cried out "NOOOOOOOOOOO! God, NOOOOOOOOOO!"

hahahaha

[Jenn202]

Mestinon is the other drug used to help consrtict blood vessles. Supposedly it does not have the side effects that the other do as far as raising your BP...

Also Compression Hose

[yogini]

I think (but am not sure) it's the autonomic nervous system which is responsible for constricting the blood vessels. For those of us who don't have EDS, when the vessels don't constrict properly, it could be just another function of having an autonomic disorder. Again I am not sure, but I think this is called autonomic neuropathy.

Compression garments should help with this, as should anything which increases the BP or blood volume (florinef, midodrine, salt, etc.).