Coagulopathy is of intense interest in the fields of emergency medicine, with many recent studies of coagulation biomarkers for clinical use. The occurrence of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) also resulted in the activation of studies about the coagulopathy. At present DIC has been admitted in many clinical conditions and many coagulation biomarkers have been studied. Fibrin degradation product (FDP) and D-dimer are one type of coagulation biomarker. A characteristic of FDP and D-dimer is the rapid and dynamic elevation of their levels when fibrinolysis occurs in several acute diseases. In this chapter, we present the clinical application of FDP and D-dimer. In trauma, FDP and -dimer have been used for the evaluation of trauma severity, to predict the likelihood of hemorrhage and to evaluate the need for the transfusion of packed red blood cells. In cardiac pulmonary arrest (CPA), FDP and D-dimer have been useful for predicting the return of spontaneous circulation. Thus, the measurement of coagulation biomarkers is useful in the diagnosis and/or treatment of trauma and CPA.
Part of the book: Biomarker