Haemostasis, Thrombosis And Atheroma Flashcards
Define haemostasis
The body’s response to stop bleeding and loss of blood
What does successful haemostasis depend on?
Vessel walls
Platelets
Coagulation system
Fibrinolytic system
How do the blood vessels aid haemostasis?
They constrict to limit blood loss
How do platelets aid haemostasis?
They adhere to damaged vessel walls and to eachother to form a platelet plug
How does the coagulation system aid haemostasis?
The cascade reaction converts prothrombin to thrombin and fibrinogen to fibrin.
Requires tight regulation, maintained by balance of procoagulant and anticoagulant (eg thrombin inhibitors).
How does the fibrinolytic system aid haemostasis?
Breaks down clots by releasing anti-thrombotic factors from endothelium.
Plasminogen converted to plasmin to break down fibrin
How is the coagulation system regulated?
Thrombin positively feeds back on factors V, VIII, XI
Thrombin Inhibitors: anti-thrombin III, alpha 1 anti-trypsin, alpha 2 macroglobulin, protein C/S
What is thrombophilia?
Inherited deficiency of antithrombin III or protein C/S
Give 2 examples of fibrinolytic therapy
Streptokinase and Tissue plasminogen activators both activate plasminogen = ‘clot busters’.
Define thrombosis
The formation of a solid mass of blood within the circulatory system during life.
What three things lead to thrombosis formation and what is the collective name for these?
Vessel wall abnormalities
Blood flow abnormalities
Blood component abnormalities
= Virchow’s Triad
Give some examples of vessel wall abnormalities that can lead to thrombosis formation
Atherosclerosis
Direct injury
Inflammation
Give some examples of blood flow abnormalities that can lead to thrombosis formation
Turbulence
Stagnation
Give some examples of blood component abnormalities that can lead to thrombosis formation
In smokers
Pregnancy
Post-op, leads to hypercoaguable blood
How does the appearance of arterial and venous thrombi differ?
Arterial = pale, granular, lower cell content, show lines of Zahn (red and yellow lines of RBCs and fibrin)
Venous = deep red, soft, higher cell content, gelatinous
What are the possible effects of arterial thrombi?
Ischaemia
Infarction
(Depends on site and collateral circulation)
What are the possible effects of venous thrombi?
Congestion
Odema
Ischaemia (if tissue pressure > arterial pressure due to odema)
Infarction
What are the five possible outcomes of thrombosis?
Lysis Propagation Organisation Recanalisation Thrombo-embolism
What occurs in lysis of a thrombus?
Complete dissolution of the thrombus, the fibrinolytic system activates and breaks down clot.
Blood flow is re-established.
What occurs in propagation of a thrombus?
Progressive spread of the thrombus (distally in arteries, proximal in veins)
What is organisation of a thrombus?
A reparative process with ingrowth of fibroblasts and capillaries into the thrombus.
Lumen remains obstructed.
What occurs in recanalisation of a thrombus?
One or more channels forms through organising thrombus.
Blood flow is re-established (usually incompletely).
How can a thrombus lead to an embolism?
Part of the thrombus breaks off, travels through the blood stream and lodges at a distant site eg. coronary artery
Define embolism
The blockage of a blood vessel by a solid, liquid or gas at a site distant from its origin.