Question and Answer Forum

Difficulty With Having Blood Drawn

By David S. Bell, MD, FAAP

Published in Lyndonville News, May 1999

Question:

Hi Dr. Bell!

I have routinely had a problem having my blood drawn, but it has gotten progressively worse in the last 18 months. This has always been VERY painful for me but with them sticking me so many times and digging for veins it is literally torture. After my last draw I could not use my arms for 72 hours. If they can get a vein to come up at all (which is rare, they've burst. I can't have blood drawn from my hands or feet because my veins there are too small and always blow out and the blood is so slow to come out (again with a syringe) that it clots and is useless before it even hits the tube.

I am wondering if there is anything that you are aware of or have come across in your research that could make this easier for me. Any suggestions that you have would be very much appreciated. I am at my wit’s end.

Janelle

Answer:

Dear Janelle,

Your comments about the blood drawing are common, and I think are an important reflection on the volume and blood vessel problem in CFS. A couple of suggestions. Place a hot towel around the arm for 15 minutes before the draw to dilate the vessels. Or put nitroglycerrine paste on the vessels to dilate them before the draw. Another suggestion - hang your arm off the table for 10 minutes to dilate the vessels. I bet it will become a lot easier.

Best wishes,

DS Bell

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