Personal Injury Law

When to Evaluate for a Hypercoagulable State

By John A. Day

The Doctors Company is a medical malpractice insurer.  Its website contains articles of interest to all Tennessee medical malpractice lawyers and, in fact, medical malpractice lawyers in every state.

For example, one interesting article is titled "When to Evaluate for a Hypercoagulable State."   Here is an excerpt:

Hypercoagulability is any alteration in the coagulation pathway that predisposes to thrombosis; it can be divided into primary (genetic) and secondary (acquired) disorders.

Acquired conditions known to predispose to DVT and PE include knee and hip surgery, abdominal surgery, brain surgery, geriatric and obstetrical surgery, prolonged immobility or bed rest, congestive heart failure, and obesity. Malignancies, especially of the lung, prostate, pancreas, and GI tract, also predispose to thromboembolism. In addition, risk for DVT and PE increases with the use of oral contraceptives and postmenopausal hormones. Other rarer conditions, such as myeloproliferative disorders and the nephrotic syndrome, also place the patient at increased risk for thromboembolic disease.

In each of these conditions, the presence of a primary (genetic) disorder or additional acquired factor(s) significantly increases the likelihood of venous thrombosis or thromboembolism. Current thought is that inherited clotting disorders contribute to about 35 percent of thromboembolic events and may account for nearly 70 percent when circumstances lead one to suspect it.

Articles such as this one help lawyers who are evaluating potential medical malpractice cases get a solid grasp on the medicine before filing a lawsuit.  The Doctors Company is to be congratulated for sharing information about medical conditions so that the public, including lawyers, can learn more about medicine.

Full post as published by Day on Torts on December 07, 2009 (boomark / email).