blood disorders
Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC)
Introduction
Disseminated intravascular coagulation is a condition in which small blood clots develop throughout the bloodstream, blocking small blood vessels. The increased clotting depletes the platelets and clotting factors needed to control bleeding, causing excessive bleeding. There are a number of possible causes, including infection, surgery, and complications of childbirth. Excessive clotting is followed by excessive bleeding. The amount of clotting factors in the blood is measured. The underlying disorder is treated. (See also Overview of Blood Clotting Disorders .) Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) begins with excessive How Blood Clots . The excessive clotting is usually stimulated by a substance that enters the blood as part of a disease (such as an infection or certain cancers) or as a complication of childbirth, retention of a dead fetus, or surgery. People who have a severe head injury or who have tissue damage caused by As the clotting factors and Blood Clots: Plugging the Breaks (cell fragments that circulate in the bloodstream and help blood clot) are depleted, excessive bleeding occurs. DIC may develop Suddenly Slowly DIC that develops slowly typically results from cancer, aneurysms, or cavernous hemangiomas (collections of dilated blood vessels). 