Health Dictionary Find a Doctor

Disseminated intravascular coagulation history and symptoms

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Shyam Patel [2]

Overview

Patients with DIC may have a history of abruptio placentae, amniotic fluid embolism, aortic aneurysm, blood transfusion reaction, drug exposure (e.g. amphetamines), eclampsia, giant hemangioma, graft-versus-host disease, HELLP syndrome, hemolytic transfusion reaction, liver disease, malignancy (especially acute promyelocytic leukemia), sepsis (esp. gram-negative bacteria), severe allergic reaction, transplant rejection, trauma (e.g. fat embolism, head injury), venomous snake and viral hemorrhagic fever.

History

Patients with DIC may have a history of one of the following:[1][2][3]

Symptoms

Symptoms of DIC vary depending on the magnitude of the imbalance of hemostasis, type of the disease, and the underlying cause. Common manifestations of DIC include bleeding and/or thrombosis with the resulting end organ damage. Patients with acute DIC typically present with bleeding symptoms ranging from oozing from venipuncture sites, petechiae, and ecchymoses; whereas chronic DIC is often associated with hypercoagulable states and thromboembolic complications.

Bleeding Symptoms [3][4]

Thrombosis Symptoms

Organ Dysfunction

Symptoms of acute kidney injury
Symptoms of hepatic dysfunction
Symptoms of acute lung injury
Symptoms of neurologic dysfunction
Symptoms of adrenal insufficiency

References

  1. Levi M, Toh CH, Thachil J, Watson HG (April 2009). “Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of disseminated intravascular coagulation. British Committee for Standards in Haematology”. Br. J. Haematol. 145 (1): 24–33. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2141.2009.07600.x. PMID 19222477.
  2. Ghosh K, Shetty S (March 2008). “Blood coagulation in falciparum malaria–a review”. Parasitol. Res. 102 (4): 571–6. doi:10.1007/s00436-007-0832-0. PMID 18066597.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Siegal T, Seligsohn U, Aghai E, Modan M (February 1978). “Clinical and laboratory aspects of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC): a study of 118 cases”. Thromb. Haemost. 39 (1): 122–34. PMID 580488.
  4. Fourrier F, Chopin C, Goudemand J, Hendrycx S, Caron C, Rime A, Marey A, Lestavel P (March 1992). “Septic shock, multiple organ failure, and disseminated intravascular coagulation. Compared patterns of antithrombin III, protein C, and protein S deficiencies”. Chest. 101 (3): 816–23. PMID 1531791.


Template:WS Template:WH

© 2026 MyEClinic – IFTM Institut für Telematik in der Medizin GmbH