Bloom works to prevent DVT
Wife of deceased NBC News correspondent visits Sioux City
By Nicole Paseka Journal staff writer | Posted: Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Two days before he died, NBC News correspondent David Bloom called his wife from Iraq with a complaint neither of them took too seriously.
Bloom was embedded with the Army's 3rd Infantry Division just outside of Baghdad. The threat of an ambush was very real. Despite that risk, Bloom was trying to fall asleep outdoors in a sleeping bag.
His wife of 13 years, Melanie Bloom, was immediately concerned.
"I said, 'David, you're scaring me, get back into the tank! What are you doing?'" Melanie Bloom said.
Her husband had a reason for wanting to sleep outdoors.
"He said, 'You know, Mel, my legs have been cramping up from sleeping every night in this tank. I just have to stretch them out tonight,'" Melanie Bloom recalled.
David Bloom's painful leg cramps were a symptom of deep-vein thrombosis, a condition that took his life on April 6, 2003.
Deep-vein thrombosis occurs when a blood clot forms in one of the large veins, usually in the lower limbs. The blood clot can travel from the victim's legs to the lungs, resulting in pulmonary embolism and death.
"(The cramps) were a huge warning sign, but neither one of us thought anything about it. It just seemed perfectly reasonable. All the troops had aches and pains and worse. So for him to have a few leg cramps didn't seem like a big deal, but he would lose his life two days later," his wife said during an interview.
For the past three years, Melanie Bloom has been the national patient spokeswoman for the Coalition to Prevent DVT. She hopes her outreach will save other families the pain of losing a loved one to deep-vein thrombosis.
Mercy Medical Center officials invited Melanie Bloom to Sioux City to share her story. She, along with Dr. Gregg Galloway of Mercy, was scheduled to speak to a crowd Tuesday night at the Sioux City Convention Center.
"It's a huge public health problem that not many people know about," said Mike Krysl, spokesman for Mercy Medical Center.
DVT is a common but serious medical condition that affects about 2 million Americans each year.
There are risk factors that heighten a person's chances of developing DVT. David Bloom had at least three of them: restricted mobility caused by long-distance travel, dehydration (the troops had a limited water supply) and Factor V Leiden -- an inherited blood coagulant disorder that is rare but increases a person's risk of developing DVT.
Melanie Bloom said that after her husband died, his two brothers were tested for Factor V Leiden. Both of them have the disorder.
When David Bloom died in Iraq at the age of 39, he left behind his wife and three young daughters: twins Christina and Nicole, 13, and Ava, 7. They live in New York City.
Melanie Bloom said she plans to have her girls tested for Factor V Leiden once they are older.
For more information about the dangers and prevention of DVT, visit www.PreventDvt.Org.
Journal staff writer Nicole Paseka can be reached at 712-293-4276 or nicolepaseka@siouxcityjournal.com.
Bloom was embedded with the Army's 3rd Infantry Division just outside of Baghdad. The threat of an ambush was very real. Despite that risk, Bloom was trying to fall asleep outdoors in a sleeping bag.
His wife of 13 years, Melanie Bloom, was immediately concerned.
"I said, 'David, you're scaring me, get back into the tank! What are you doing?'" Melanie Bloom said.
Her husband had a reason for wanting to sleep outdoors.
"He said, 'You know, Mel, my legs have been cramping up from sleeping every night in this tank. I just have to stretch them out tonight,'" Melanie Bloom recalled.
David Bloom's painful leg cramps were a symptom of deep-vein thrombosis, a condition that took his life on April 6, 2003.
Deep-vein thrombosis occurs when a blood clot forms in one of the large veins, usually in the lower limbs. The blood clot can travel from the victim's legs to the lungs, resulting in pulmonary embolism and death.
"(The cramps) were a huge warning sign, but neither one of us thought anything about it. It just seemed perfectly reasonable. All the troops had aches and pains and worse. So for him to have a few leg cramps didn't seem like a big deal, but he would lose his life two days later," his wife said during an interview.
For the past three years, Melanie Bloom has been the national patient spokeswoman for the Coalition to Prevent DVT. She hopes her outreach will save other families the pain of losing a loved one to deep-vein thrombosis.
Mercy Medical Center officials invited Melanie Bloom to Sioux City to share her story. She, along with Dr. Gregg Galloway of Mercy, was scheduled to speak to a crowd Tuesday night at the Sioux City Convention Center.
"It's a huge public health problem that not many people know about," said Mike Krysl, spokesman for Mercy Medical Center.
DVT is a common but serious medical condition that affects about 2 million Americans each year.
There are risk factors that heighten a person's chances of developing DVT. David Bloom had at least three of them: restricted mobility caused by long-distance travel, dehydration (the troops had a limited water supply) and Factor V Leiden -- an inherited blood coagulant disorder that is rare but increases a person's risk of developing DVT.
Melanie Bloom said that after her husband died, his two brothers were tested for Factor V Leiden. Both of them have the disorder.
When David Bloom died in Iraq at the age of 39, he left behind his wife and three young daughters: twins Christina and Nicole, 13, and Ava, 7. They live in New York City.
Melanie Bloom said she plans to have her girls tested for Factor V Leiden once they are older.
For more information about the dangers and prevention of DVT, visit www.PreventDvt.Org.
Journal staff writer Nicole Paseka can be reached at 712-293-4276 or nicolepaseka@siouxcityjournal.com.
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Vinny S. R.I. wrote on Jul 3, 2007 5:33 AM:
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