As many as 1% of long-haul air travellers may develop deep vein thrombosis, research from New Zealand scientists has revealed.
Scientists found that three to four travellers on every jumbo jet are likely to develop blood clots.
Although the majority will never develop symptoms, 30,000 people in Britain die each year from pulmonary embolisms, with Kings College London estimating that roughly 1000 of these cases a year attributable to flying.
All the travellers taking part in the study had flown for at least 10 hours, with an average of 39 hours travelled over six weeks.
A landmark ruling in July 2003 at the Court of Appeal fond that relatives of victims of deep vein thrombosis could not claim compensation from airlines.
