Introducing myself: Diane from Victoria

Hello everyone,
I am Diane from Victoria. In 2004, in Seattle, Washington, I suffered a massive DVT that stretched from my mid-thigh into my left groin. After ruling out all other possibilities, it was determined that I have May-Thurner Syndrome, which is another name for Iliac Vein Compression Syndrome (IVCS).

As described in this forum it is a congenital abnormality of the anatomy that likely exists from birth and causes a compression of the vein by the nearby artery, which pushes the vein into the 5th lumbar and compresses the weaker vein (arteries are much tougher than veins). Therefore severe sudden-onset back pain can be a symptom, along with many others such as leg swelling and discoloration.

In my case the specialists recommended that a stent be placed at the spot in the vein where the compression was pinching off the blood supply. Before the stent could be put into the correct place, the clot had to be dissolved via a catheter inserted behind the knee up into the groin. TPA was administered through the catheter and left for 2 1/2 days until the clot was sufficiently dissolved. At that point the stent was installed using the same catheterization technique.

I invite others with May-Thurner to have a look at the forum on this site and send us your story. It is a somewhat rare condition that affects mostly females of any age group, even children. I was lucky that it didn't happen to me earlier in life, particularly during pregnancies. Would love to hear from others.