Haemostasis Flashcards
(144 cards)
What is Haemostasis?
the cellular and biochemical processes that enables both the specific and regulated cessation of bleeding in response to vascular insult
What is the aim of haemostasis?
- prevention of blood loss from intact vessels
- arrest bleeding from injured vessels
- enable tissue repair
What are the mechanisms of Haemostasis?
- vessel constriction
- formation of an unstable platelet plug
- stabilisation of the plug with fibrin
- vessel repair and dissolution of clot
What happens when vessel constriction occurs?
- vascular smooth muscle cells contract locally
- limits blood flow to injured vessel
What happens during primary haemostasis?
formation of an unstable platelet plug
- platelet adhesion
- platelet aggregation
- limits blood loss and provides surface for coagulation
What happens during secondary haemostasis?
stabilisation of the plug with fibrin
- blood coagulation
- stops blood loss
What happens during fibrinolysis?
vessel repair and dissolution of the clot
- cell migration/proliferation and fibrinolysis
- restores vessel integrity
Why is understanding of haemostatic mechanisms important?
- diagnose and treat bleeding disorders
- control bleeding
- identify thrombosis risk factors
- treat thrombotic disorders
- monitor drugs used to treat bleeding/thrombotic disorders
What is balanced in normal haemostasis?
- fibrinolytic factors and anticoagulant proteins
AND - coagulant factors
- platelets
What can cause the lack of a specific factor?
- failure of production (congenital and acquired)
- increased consumption and clearance
What can cause defective function of a specific factor?
- genetic
- acquired: drugs, synthetic defect and inhibition
What are the 3 main components of primary haemostasis?
- platelets
- Von Willebrand factor
- Vessel wall
What do platelets adhere to in platelet adhesion?
- collagen revealed in wall damage
- direct via Glp1a receptor
- VWfactor GlP1b
What activates platelets?
thromboxane
What does Thrombocytopenia mean?
low number of platelets
What are the 2 causes of Thrombocytopenia?
- bone marrow failure
- Accelerated clearance
- Pooling and destruction in an enlarged spleen
What can cause bone marrow failure?
- leukaemia
- B12 deficiency
What causes accelerated platelet clearance?
- immune (ITP)
- Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC)
(cleared in the peripheral system)
What happens in Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP)?
- anti-platlet antibodies
- attach to sensitised platlets
- cleared by macrophages of the reticula endothelial system of the spleen
(COMMON)
What causes the impaired function of platelets?
- Hereditary absence of glycoproteins or storage granules (rare)
- Acquired due to drugs
What is an example of hereditary impaired platelet function?
Glanzmann’s thrombasthenia
- problem with: GP2a
What causes Bernard Souller syndrome?
absence of GP1b
What causes storage pool disease?
Reduction in the granular contents of platlets
What drugs are associated with causing impaired platelet function?
- aspirin
- NSAIDs
- clopidogral (common)