A young woman’s life was cruelly cut short in a case that has sent shockwaves across India. It shows how dangerous it may be to take period-delaying medications without a doctor’s supervision.
Dr. Vivekanand, a vascular surgeon, told the sad case of an 18-year-old girl who took hormonal tablets for only three days to delay her period for a religious event on a recent podcast. The young woman quickly had a lot of pain and edema in her legs. When she got to the hospital, physicians found that she had Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that was almost to her navel and could have killed her.
Dr. Vivekanand said that the family decided to wait until the next morning, even though the doctor told them to admit her right away. The sad choice turned out to be deadly. At 2 AM, the young woman was hurried back to the emergency hospital, but she had already stopped breathing and could not be saved.
People often take period-delaying tablets for convenience at weddings, vacations, or other events. These pills have a lot of hormones, like norethisterone. These hormones are normally safe for short-term use under a doctor’s supervision, but they can significantly raise the risk of blood clots, especially in those who already have health problems or a genetic tendency to clot.
Dr. Vivekanand’s tale is a strong reminder of how dangerous DVT may be and how important it is to talk to a doctor before taking any hormonal drug. If you have pain, swelling, or redness in one leg, you should go to the doctor right away. A clot can break loose and move to the lungs, heart, or brain, which could be deadly.