NHS Choices has conducted an assessment of a report in the Daily Telegraph that “sitting in a window seat during a long flight can increase the risk of deep vein thrombosis.”

The report is based on new guidance published in Chest, from the American College of Chest Physicians that addresses the risk of both DVT after long-haul flights and the potentially fatal pulmonary embolisms that can follow. The guidelines also include recommendations about the best ways for travellers to reduce their risk of DVT. The assessment notes that the guidelines seem to debunk the long-held assumption that a lack of legroom causes DVT (“economy-class syndrome.”)

For travellers on flights longer than six hours who have an increased risk of DVT the new guidelines recommend:

• Frequent walking about during the flight.

• Calf muscle stretching.

• Sitting in an aisle seat if possible (as more likely to get up and move)

• Wearing below-the-knee graduated compression stockings.

The guidelines do not recommend compression stockings for long-distance travellers who are not at increased risk of DVT, and advise against use of aspirin or anticoagulants to prevent DVT or pulmonary embolism for most people; their use should be considered on an individual basis only for those at particularly high risk of DVT.