Clinical Information

Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)/intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis (ICF), collectively termed DIC/ICF is a consumptive hemorrhagic and microthrombotic disorder that manifests as clinical bleeding or thrombosis. Conditions associated with DIC/ICF can include; sepsis, trauma (head injury, severe tissue injury), obstetric complications (amniotic fluid embolism, abruptio placentae), malignancies, vascular disorders (hemangiomas, aortic aneurysm), and immunologic disorders.

These disorders can cause formation of thrombin and fibrin intravascularly, which can result in widespread fibrin deposition contributing to thrombosis and organ failure or, conversely, can result in bleeding due to consumption of coagulation proteins and platelets. DIC/ICF is not a disease; rather it is a syndrome that is secondary to an underlying disorder.