Anger over airline reaction to DVT research

The claims on BBC1’s Panorama programme last night have triggered a furious response from victims of deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Survivor Terry Salsbury, of Oxted, Surrey, who suffered four strokes after a blood clot travelled to his brain following a flight from Canada in April last year, said scientists should be allowed to carry out their research.

‘‘I’m sure that airlines do know about it, and it’s vital that more research is carried out into the risks,’’ he said.

‘‘I was lucky that I recovered from the stroke, but others have died and more research needs to be done.’’

Airlines have been criticised in the past for not offering enough information to passengers about the condition, which is estimated to kill up to 1,000 UK travellers a year.

Ruth Christoffersen, whose daughter Emma, 28, died after collapsing following a 20-hour flight from Australia last year, has said she felt airlines were ignoring the problem, and has called for a public inquiry.

Her husband John, of Newport, Gwent, said: ‘‘They (the airlines) know full well that if a lot of people knew about it, a lot of people would never fly again.’’

Five scientists studying DVT in long haul flights had their separate requests for information from airlines refused or ignored, they told the programme.

Professor Sam Shuster, of Newcastle University, said that he asked British Airways for access to passengers in 1996.

In a letter of reply, BA refused, writing: ‘‘Most passengers do not wish to get involved and are simply keen to get on with their journey.

‘‘There is the added difficulty that we have to tread carefully because as a commercial organisation we have no wish to imply that flying might be bad for one’s health.’’

BA’s medical officer David Flower said the airline acknowledged the probable link between flying and DVT in the early 1990s, and began issuing exercise advice to passengers.

The risk of forming blood clots is thought to increase if passengers do not move for long periods of time.

Dr Flower said BA’s inflight ‘‘well-being’’ pamphlet did not mention DVT because of fears that international passengers would not understand the condition.

Calling it a potentially fatal blood clot would be ‘‘confusing and alarmist’’, he said, adding: ‘‘English is not the mother tongue of many of our passengers and therefore what we have to write is language that is understandable to the majority of our passengers.’’

Links between long haul flights and DVT were made as early as 1968 but some airline officials consider the association to be unproven.

Experts have estimated that DVT affects up to one in 10 long haul passengers and the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions set up a study on the possible risk of DVT during air travel earlier this year.

DVT has been dubbed economy class syndrome because of the suspected links with blood clots - which can be fatal if they reach the lungs or brain - and cramped conditions in cheaper airline seats, but can affect travellers in any class.

Emirates’ medical officer told Panorama that passengers were ‘‘not necessarily’’ advised to exercise because of the blood clot risk.

Lufthansa’s medical officer said that high-risk passengers, like smokers and women using the contraceptive pill, had a duty to inform themselves about the condition.

Dr John Cruickshank, who suffered a pulmonary embolism after flying in 1988, said his offer to make a safety video for airlines was turned down.

He told the programme: ‘‘The database is now so overwhelming in favour of the linkage - as with smoking, cancer, heart attacks and stroke - that there comes a point that you must say ‘OK, it’s not pukka science, but we have to address the issue’.

‘‘I think they (the airlines) should have addressed the issue earlier.’’