What can cause blood under the skin in leg and ankle?

Question

Hi doctor,

My father-in-law has blood under the skin on his leg and ankle. He has had a stroke in the past and is on blood thinners. He said it is not painful and he cannot recall any hit. There is some swelling in some black and blue. He is on cholesterol medicines too. Please help.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I need to know what blood thinners are being used. Warfarin and other blood thinners like Aspirin, Clopidogrel act by inhibiting normal coagulation cascade in one way or the other, the effect of which is increased risk of bleeding. Minor nose bleed and bruising, major gastrointestinal bleeding, intracerebral bleeding, etc. Sudden unexplained bruising can occur spontaneously or with minimal trauma due to leak in surface capillaries. This will spontaneously disappear. The effect of Warfarin can be known by INR (International normalized ratio) which is usually maintained below 2.5. His BMI (body mass index) is also high. I would advise him to follow proper diet and do moderate physical activity.