Kevin's DVT Story

For over 30 years, Kevin Dunmire of El Mirage suffered from recurrent episodes of Deep Vein Thrombosis.   

 The first one took place shortly after he had knee surgery.

 “The back of my calf was really hurting, and I felt like I had been kicked by a horse in the back of my leg,” Kevin, 57, says.

Kevin took both heparin and Coumadin, but the DVT returned with a vengeance.
“I worked for a hardware store for 24 years, and over time all of the walking on concrete, and going up and down ladders made it worse. My leg would discolor and I would have sharp pains.” Kevin recalls his last day of work in the summer of 2010.

 “I was crying and crawling out to my car because the pain was so bad.”

Although Kevin consulted with numerous physicians, he continued to suffer from DVT. Then he met Dr. Patricia Thorpe at Abrazo Arizona Heart Institute.

In December 2014, during two procedures that were performed at Abrazo Arizona Heart Hospital, Dr. Thorpe placed stents into his inferior vena cava and both legs, which allowed the blood to flow towards the heart more efficiently again. Almost immediately, Kevin began to feel better.

“The blood flow in my legs is absolutely incredible now, and I no longer have any pain,” Kevin says, adding that he cannot say enough good things about Abrazo Arizona Heart Hospital.

“From the janitorial staff to the food service team to the nurses and doctors, and all the staff that was involved in my treatment, they are all professionals.”

Kevin, who is the father of two adopted kids with special needs, says that without the nurses, doctors, specialists, Dr. Thorpe along with the support of his family, he is not sure that he would still be here today to tell his success story.

Disclaimer: Dr. Patricia Thorpe is an independent physician and is not an employee, agent or representative of Abrazo Community Health Network’s Abrazo Arizona Heart Hospital. She is solely responsible for the provision of his medical services to patients.”