Heart beat; Flying high with heart trouble

Harvard Heart Letter, December, 2004

If worries about your heart keep you from traveling by plane, then recommendations from two Yale doctors might ease your mind.

Air travel is safe for most people with stable heart disease. It's off limits for only a few groups, according to cardiologist Stephen Possick and international health specialist Michele Barry.

Extra precautions against developing a blood clot in a leg or arm during a long-haul flight are in order for most people with heart disease. Drinking plenty of water, wearing below-the-knee compression stockings, and doing in-flight calf stretches and other exercises are the main ways to avoid a deep-vein clot. Booking an aisle seat can give you a bit more room to move your legs.

Recommendations from the American College of Chest...