Critical Bleeding Causes & Management in Pharmacy Practice

The causes of critical bleeding are diverse and are stratified within surgery, medicine, and obstetrics. Critical bleeding and its pathophysiology can have serious consequences for a patient's prognosis and may lead ultimately to death. Knowing the various causes of critical bleeding and potential o...

The causes of critical bleeding are diverse and are stratified within surgery, medicine, and obstetrics. Critical bleeding and its pathophysiology can have serious consequences for a patient's prognosis and may lead ultimately to death. Knowing the various causes of critical bleeding and potential outcomes will aid critical care pharmacists in their approach to management. In addition, understanding the differences between traditional and cell-based models of coagulation can improve a pharmacist's ability to explain pharmacotherapeutic mechanisms of action. Hence, application of this information in pharmacy practice will help ensure that therapies to manage and arrest blood loss are used appropriately within a wide variety of clinical scenario [Hemostatic](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/hemostatic-agent) function studies were carried out in twelve patients with elevations in blood non-protein nitrogen (or urea). Eleven were found to suffer from some form of platelet abnormality. Mild [thrombocytopenia](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/thrombocytopenia) was present in 3 and thrombocytopathia in 8. Four patients showed deficiencies of two or more of the [plasma factors](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/plasma-factor): prothrombin, proconvertin, proaccelerin or PTC. ( Lewis, J. H., Ferguson, J. H., Spaugh, E., Fresh, J. W. and Zucker, M. B.: Acquired hypoprothrombinemia. Blood, in press)