Coagulation is when your blood thickens to change from a liquid to a semi-solid or solid. As your blood thickens (coagulates) it forms blood clots (gel-like clumps of blood) that plug an injured blood vessel. Normally, blood clots help stop bleeding when you’re injured. But if your body has problems controlling blood clotting, it’s considered a coagulation disorder. Coagulation disorders can result in either too little blood clotting (hemorrhage) or too much blood clotting (thrombosis).
Platelets are a type of blood cell that help create temporary plugs to form blood clots and stop bleeding. Platelet function disorders occur when the body’s platelets don’t form plugs properly. This makes bleeding go on longer than it should and can be life threatening after an injury or surgery.
For patients with coagulation disorders, treatment success depends on careful management of risk factors. Treatment for platelet function disorders varies with each specific cause.
What are the symptoms of coagulation and platelet function disorders?
Symptoms of coagulation disorders that result in not enough blood clotting (hemorrhage) include bruising easily and excessively, an injury that won’t stop bleeding, prolonged bleeding from ordinary cuts, and extreme fatigue.
For coagulation disorders that result in too much clotting (thrombosis), symptoms include the swelling of an arm or leg, shortness of breath, fast heart rate, a heart attack or stroke at a young age, and reoccurring pregnancy loss or stillbirth.
Symptoms for platelet function disorders can be mild or severe. These include internal bleeding, unexplained bruising, bleeding from the nose, mouth or gums, blood in your stool, and small red bumps on the skin (petechiae).
What causes coagulation and platelet function disorders?
Some coagulation and platelet function disorders are inherited from parent to child. And some are acquired later in life or are a result of other medical conditions.
Some causes of coagulation disorders include:
- Liver disease
- Vitamin K deficiency
- Genetic conditions (hemophilia, Von Willebrand disease, Factor V Leiden disorder, antithrombin III deficiency and others)
Some causes of platelet function disorders include:
- Medications (penicillin, aspirin and others)
- Diseases (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, cirrhosis of the liver and others)
- Genetic conditions (Chediak-Higashi syndrome, MYH9-related disorders, Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome and others)
How are coagulation and platelet function disorders diagnosed?
Diagnosing these disorders takes several steps. After learning your and your family’s medical history, your doctor could order:
- MRI
- CT scan
- Ultrasound
- Blood tests
- Bleeding time studies
- Genetic counseling or testing
Your doctor may also test you for underlying conditions that can cause these disorders.
How are coagulation and platelet function disorders treated?
Treatment for coagulation disorders are based on risk reduction, including changes in lifestyle or activities due to risk of bleeding. Other treatments include medications to improve blood coagulation or help prevent clots from dissolving. Patients with moderate to severe bleeding disorders may require replacement therapy (adding missing clotting factors into your blood supply).
Treatment for platelet function disorders may include changing your diet and lifestyle, medications and transfusions (receiving blood from an external source).