It not at all unusual to be on blood thinners for the rest of your life after having a dangerous blood clot like you had. Your best bet would be to ask the doc if there are any other drugs that might work for you that don't require having your blood checked so often. Personally if the doc thinks you still need the coumadin and he can give you a valid reason why I would continue taking it many blood clots can cause death in matter of minutes if they were to break loose. Better to stay on blood thinners than run the risk of another blood clot.

Thank you for your quick response. I checked some sights on the web and most, but not all say it depends on many individual factors and I have some of the adverse ones which would require me to remain on coumadin for the rest of my life. Luckily, the dr. said he would get a new machine that would check my protimes instantly and I wouldn't have to have blood drawn every week. It is just a pinprick. That would be sooo much better, as my veins don't wish to cooperate with needles anymore!
KaP

I had a quadruple by-pass in Dec.2002. Also had an aorta valve replacement, using a mechanical valve. Because of this my doctors tell me I must remain on Coumadin for the rest of my life. I have to have my blood tested every month to determine the amount of Coumadin I must take. I would be interested in hearing more about the protime machine since I hate the blood tests! Can you give me some information on them? The veins in my arms are too deep to draw blood so they use the veins on the top of my hand. Since I was in the hospital for one month in Dec. due to the surgery and complications, the veins in my hands have alot of scar tissue, the lab technicians tell me, and it is very painful to have the blood drawn. Infomation would be appreciated.