title: Measurements of tissue factor-like activity in plasma of patients with DIC.
abstract: Tissue factor-like activity was measured in the plasma of 30 patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation(DIC) and 22 patients without DIC using a chromogenic substrate. Twenty-three of the 30 patients with DIC (77%) exhibited tissue factor-like activity levels above normal range (greater than 3.0 U/L), and in eleven of these patients, the levels were more than 10 U/L. Of the 22 patients without DIC, seven patients had elevated levels (3-10 U/L), and had a possibility to be developing DIC. So, we considered them to be in a pre-DIC state. No correlation was found between tissue factor-like activity and alpha 2 plasmin inhibitor-plasmin complex or FDP-D dimer. In a patient with acute monocytic leukemia, the elevated tissue factor-like activity (84.4 U/L) rapidly decreased after the initiation of chemotherapy, whereas in a patient with pancreatic cancer, the level remained elevated (67.4-79.2 U/L). These results suggested that the plasma tissue factor-like activity is differ from the other parameters reflecting the process of DIC and is a useful indicator of the presence of an initiating factor of blood coagulation in some selected patients with DIC or pre-DIC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Tottori University Hospital, Yonago, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Iijima
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakamura
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000933:Antifibrinolytic Agents / Q000097:blood; D002544:Cerebral Infarction / Q000150:complications; D004211:Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation / Q000097:blood* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products / Q000378:metabolism; D005341:Fibrinolysin / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007948:Leukemia, Monocytic, Acute / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications; D013925:Thromboplastin / Q000378:metabolism*; D000979:alpha-2-Antiplasmin
chemical_list: D000933:Antifibrinolytic Agents; D005338:Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products; D000979:alpha-2-Antiplasmin; C036309:fibrin fragment D; C037742:plasmin-plasmin inhibitor complex; D013925:Thromboplastin; D005341:Fibrinolysin