Patient education: Disseminated intravascular coagulation (The Basics)

What is disseminated intravascular coagulation? — Disseminated intravascular coagulation, or "DIC," is a serious condition that makes people bleed too easily, get blood clots too easily, or both.

DIC is most likely to happen in people with certain conditions, including:

●Sepsis – Sepsis is a serious illness that happens when an infection travels through the body.

●A recent severe injury or major surgery

●Cancer, especially cancer that has spread throughout a person's body, pancreatic cancer, or a specific kind of leukemia called "acute promyelocytic leukemia"

●Pregnancy (very rarely)

What are the symptoms of DIC? — DIC is often related to a serious illness, such as a bloodstream infection, serious injury, certain types of cancer, or a rare problem during pregnancy. People with DIC are often very sick. Common symptoms include:

●Bleeding too easily – The most common type of bleeding is oozing from cuts where an IV is placed. (An IV is a thin tube that goes into a vein.) People can also bleed under the skin or inside the body. Bleeding under the skin can cause large bruises or a rash of red or purple spots that are not painful and do not go away when touched.

●Getting blood clots too easily – Blood clots can form in and damage different organs in the body. Depending on the part of the body involved, symptoms might include:

•Swelling, redness, or pain in the leg

•Trouble breathing, or chest pain when you take a deep breath

●Symptoms related to the serious illness, such as confusion, trouble thinking clearly, or going into a coma

Is there a test for DIC? — There are several tests that can help a doctor decide if a person is likely to have DIC. But there is no 1 test that can tell for sure. To check for DIC, the doctor will look at a person's medical condition and do blood tests that measure blood clotting.

How is DIC treated? — The most important treatment for DIC is to treat the condition that caused the DIC.

After that, treatment depends on a person's symptoms. Most people do not need other treatment.

People who are bleeding a lot might be treated with:

●Platelet transfusions – Platelets are normal blood cells that help blood to clot.

●Clotting factors – Clotting factors are natural proteins that help blood to clot.

People with DIC who get blood clots too easily might be treated with a medicine to prevent blood clots.

More on this topic

Patient education: Sepsis in adults (The Basics)
Patient education: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (The Basics)
Patient education: Delirium (confusion) (The Basics)
Patient education: Acute kidney injury (The Basics)
Patient education: Blood in the urine (hematuria) in adults (The Basics)
Patient education: D-dimer test (The Basics)

Patient education: Delirium (Beyond the Basics)
Patient education: Blood in the urine (hematuria) in adults (Beyond the Basics)