Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation: Clinical Diagnosis and Management

Abstract

Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is a phenomenon with the potential for causing thrombosis and bleeding. DIC, typically occurring in patients with critical illness, can manifest as an acute, life-threatening emergency or as a chronic, subclinical process depending on the influence of morbidity from the underlying cause. The presence of DIC increases the risk of mortality by twofold in patients with trauma and severe sepsis and is an independent predictor of mortality. The pathogenesis of DIC is not only related to abnormal coagulation activation and platelet consumption but also involves multiple mechanisms of the inflammatory system and innate immunity.