One of the most important functions of our body to keep us healthy, is to be in total equilibrium or balance. Therefore, all our systems must function in sinc with each other. An important part of this balance, is the functioning of our coagulation system. A simple definition for our coagulation system is how our blood reacts inside our body. We need a fine balance between bleeding and clotting. This process of is dependant on different pathways in our body that invloves small particles, called blood platelets and molecules that circulate in our blood plasma - the watery part of our blood. If we have a small wound after hurting ourselves, our platelets and plasma proteins will undergo a natural process of coagulation to try to prevent too much blood loss. This will result in a cascade of reactions that will form small thread-like fibers, that we call fibrin fibers. These fibers form nets over the wound to prevent further blood loss. You can see the nets in the electron microscope photo added to the post. After the formation of the nets, we need to lyse or break up the fibers again, especially if these fiber form inside our bodies, otherwise we form blood clots. So, you can see that we need a fine balance between formation of fibirn nets and breaking up of these nets. If our bodies do not for fibrin nets during injury, we may bleed too much and if our bodies do not break the nets up successfully, our equilibirum or balance is impaired. This may cause thrombosis, heart attacks and general bad health. Sometimes, external factors in a healthy individual, can cause a disturbance of equilibrium of this hemostasis. An example of this is smoking. In my next post I will discuss research that shows how smoking disturbes the coagulation system. Lets make sense of science!
I just read an article that states that eating geen leafy vegetables counteract medications like warafin which reduce clots in people suffering from pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis. This balance and hemostasis seems hard to achieve. Blood thinners and other anti-coagulant medications can actually cause sudden bleeding,externally and internally. Therefore people with this condition require regular blood tests,which is alarming in a country where people still have reduced medical care access and generally stock up on veggies when sick.
ReplyDeleteAmerican National Heart Lung and Blood Institute http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Disease/pe/pe_living.html
Post-apartheid medicall access http://digitalcommons.hsc.unt.edu/csi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1092&context=theses
I have a brother that has been smoking for over 13 years and a while ago he was diagnosed with having fluid on his lungs...
ReplyDeleteFluid buildup in the lung is called pulmonary adema. Smoking diminishes the blood's capasity to carry oxygen to the body. Pulmonary edema is also known to increase your risk of an heart attack. And coninuing to smoke can result in a secondary heart attack that either results in death or increase your risk of lung cancer.
To stop smoking is the only way of preventing this from happening or to stop the situation from getting worse.
"Smoking and fluid on the lungs"
http://www.enotalone.com/forum/showthread.php?t=76216&page=1
I am type 1 diabetic and I was interested to see if diabetes has an effect on clot formation.
ReplyDeleteApparently it does:
In patients with diabetes mellitus, particularly type 2 patients, high blood glucose levels cause glycation of fibrinogen. This is when a sugar molecule is bound to a protein or lipid molecule without the controlling action of an enzyme. Hemoglobin molecules are one of the main molecules to be glycated and are then known as HbA1c molecules.
Diabetic patients have to go for HbA1c blood tests every 3 months. This is a quantitative measure of glycaemic control. Poor control results in high HbA1c levels, because red blood cells are exposed to high levels of glucose in the blood more often, so the glucose molecules can attach to the hemoglobin.
Uncontrolled diabetes is correlated to fibronin glycation and the formation of macrovasular complications. This includes cardiovasular disease, nephropathy and retinopathy. All these diseases are linked to the clotting of small blood capillaries due to long term hyperglycaemia and a thickening of the blood.
Research shows that after control of blood glucose was achieved in patients who had high HbA1c levels, fibrinogen glycation was reduced significantly. However, the damage caused by high blood glucose could most often not be reversed by improving glycaemic control.
Link to PubMed:
"Glycaemic control improves fibrin network characteristics in type 2 diabetes - a purified fibrinogen model." http://0-www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.innopac.up.ac.za/pubmed/18392327
Is there anyway of insuring that the body maintains a good ratio of fibrin fibers to prevent too many or not enough nets forming during injury? Maybe diet or exercise?
ReplyDeleteDue to all the side effects associated with anticoagulants alternative approaches are being studied that will be more efficient and safe.
ReplyDeleteIn the Journal of the American Society of Hematology they published an article about an alternative anticoagulant. They tested the effect of certain second-generation antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) on mice. The antisense oligonucleotides targets coagulation factor XI. Since no bleeding followed the use of this substance it is believed that the treatment of thrombosis with antisense oligonucleotides will be effective and safe.
Journal of the American Society of Hematology
http://bloodjournal.hematologylibrary.org/content/116/22/4684.full.pdf+html?sid=c3948394-b2a6-4b23-b54c-1ae37f66c328
My friend Doug has just related a sad story of a 17-year old athlete who had fallen and severely cracked his elbow. Despite this, he ran in an athletics day race three days later. During the race, he began to lose his balance, stumble and ran off the track, collapsed and went into a coma! Three days later he died in hospital. A blood clot had travelled from his elbow into his brain. How can it be possible that his body did not break the clot down in such a healthy person? As far as I understand, blood clotting is a normal process in order to aid in the healing of a bone fracture.. is there a way to prevent the 'good' clots from dislodging or is it more of a random chance occurance that cant be prevented?
ReplyDeleteI think being an athelete does not necessarily mean that you are healthy and the fact that he continued with exercise triggers high blood flow. due to the pressure in the blood vessels there might have been a possibility that a fragment of the clot would have escaped.does clotting also help in bone healing?
ReplyDeleteScience Daily shared some interesting statistics linking blood clots and cancer. Some of the statistics are as follows:
ReplyDeleteAbout 10-15% of all patients with VTE (venous thromboembolism) have cancer.
Blood clots are the second leading cause of death in cancer patients (infection is the leading cause).
Cancer patients who develop a blood clot have a higher chance of dying. Over 94% of people admitted to the hospital with cancer and VTE will die within 6 months, compared to 40% of people admitted to the hospital with cancer alone
Does anyone know why there is such a high correlation between cancer and blood clots? Is it to do with the types of cancer treatments?
http://www.stoptheclot.org/News/article210.htm
Patients with cancer have a greater number of platelets and clotting factors in their blood stream due to the cancer cells producing and releasing chemicals that cause the body to make platelets. The reason there is such a high correlation between cancer and blood clots is because the abilitiy of cancer cells to spread is in part caused by blood clotting factors that fix malignant cells in blood capillaries. When chemotherapy kils the cancer cells, the cells produce substances that increase blood clots. Tamoxifen is a hormone drug used as a cancer treatment which usually increases the risk of clots. Surgery and chemotherapy damage walls of blood vessels this again also plays a huge role in blood clot formation. Another reason is that Patients with cancer have very low levels of anticoagulants, therefore their blood does not thin well. Sometimes it depends on what type of camcer a patient has, because cancers such as lung, stomach and bowel cancer produce a substance known as mucin and this substances further increases your risk of developing blood clots.
ReplyDeleteread more on cancer and blood clots on http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/about-cancer/cancer-questions/cancer-and-the-risk-of-blood-clots
ReplyDeleteARE CLOTS DURING YOUR MENSTRUAL CYCLE NORMAL?
ReplyDeleteSince we are trying to stop the clot campaign many of you might think that a blood clot during your cycle might be serious. Unfortunately, it MIGHT BE SERIOUS.So you may ask, how come I haven’t noticed any blood clots. The good news is that, during your menses your body produces anticoagulants as a means of thinning your blood to counteract the clotting effect. This is a homeostatic mechanism whereby your body, by means of clotting, regulates the amount of blood loss. However, sometimes during a strong blood flow, it is possible that the blood may pass before the anticoagulants can function, resulting in dark red lumps noticeable on the pad or tampon. So how does it happen?Keep in mind that menstruation is, after all, the shedding of the lining of the uterus. So when blood has been retained in the uterus, it is more likely to clot. Therefore the principle of menstrual blood clots is that the heavier the blood flow (the blood is accumulating faster), the more likely blood clots will accumulate. Because of such, women should be concerned when they are bleeding heavier than usual. Also take care that the clots are a moderate size not larger than a few inches and certainly not larger than a South African 50 cent coin! Now that I’m aware of the possible menstrual clotting what can I do to check whether the clots are normal and moderate? You may find that menstrual blood clots vary in colour. Don’t panic! The more red your clots are the faster your blood has travelled outside. Furthermore, the darker they are, the older the blood. According to the Centre for Endometriosis Care, “The most important indicators are the blood count (hematocrit) and the duration of clotting. If a woman can maintain a normal blood count without developing anaemia, and the clotting does not last more than the length of her normal period, it is usually considered within acceptable limits.” So have your haematocrit test to make sure that your levels are within the normal range. To conclude, menstrual blood clots are normal. A temporary heavy bleed probably does not mean anything. But if it should occur regularly, it is advisable to consult your doctor.
ReplyDeleteFor more info log on to Center for Endometriosis Care http://www.centerforendo.com/articles/clots.htm AND http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003150.htm
ReplyDeleteI found that smoking greatly raises the risk of unwanted blood clots by causing platelets to stick together. Smoking also damages the lining of the blood vessels, which can cause the formation of blood clots and it has therefore been linked to the development of peripheral vascular diseases.
ReplyDeleteHDL acts as a mop in a process known as “reverse cholesterol transport”. It’s involved in “mopping up” or extracting excess cholesterol that deposits on the inner layer of blood vessels and delivering them to the liver in the gastrointestinal tract for elimination. It also helps keep blood vessels dilated thereby promoting better blood flow; it also reduces blood vessel injury through its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory functions.
Low levels of HDL-C in the blood can lead to an uncontrolled accumulation of fatty deposits and plaque in the blood vessel walls. These plaques then build up, forming clots that can break off, travel in the body’s circulatory system and become lodged in an artery or vein either in the brain, heart or kidney. This will lead to atherosclerosis, stroke and cardiac arrest.