GWENT patients suspected of having deep vein thrombosis (DVT) may now be spared painful and unnecessary blood-thinning injections while waiting for diagnosis.

Three new devices called plethysmographs are being used at the Royal Gwent, Nevill Hall and Caerphilly District Miners' hospitals to simplify and speed up the screening process for a condition that in rare cases brings potentially fatal complications.

They are also saving the NHS money by reducing the need for costly specialist Doppler scans.

"Doppler scans can detect thrombosis in the legs, but cost a lot more than plethysmography," said Fran Pressley, Gwent Healthcare Trust's clinical lead nurse for anti-coagulation.

"With the other system of testing, patients can wait for a week for a scan. In the meantime they need blood-thinning Heparin injections, just in case there is a problem.

"These can be very painful. If the scan comes back negative that's good, but it means they hadn't needed the injections."

Annually, around 5,000 people in Gwent present with potential DVT. Of the six out of 10 requiring a scan, only about one third are positive.

Plethysmography might rule out the need for up to 2,000 Doppler scans per year, saving patients pain and inconvenience, and the NHS money on scans and drugs.

A DVT is a blood clot, usually in the lower leg. Complications may occur if a fragment separates and lodges in a lung, which can be fatal in severe cases.

DVT hit the headlines after the deaths of several passengers on long- haul plane journeys who were subsequently found to have developed the condition. Immobility is a potential cause, along with age, family history, obesity and recent surgery or bodily trauma.

Newport woman Ruth Christoffersen's daughter, Emma, died aged 28 in September 2000 after a long-haul flight from Australia.

Former Caerphilly county borough mayor Risca councillor David Wiltshire funded the plethysmographs from his appeal. They cost £2,000 each.