D-dimer

Why this test?

• For diagnosis of DIC syndrome.
• For the diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis.
• For additional assessment of the severity of blood clot formation and monitoring of anticoagulant therapy in pulmonary embolism, stroke.

In what cases is it prescribed?

With symptoms of deep vein thrombosis:

• pronounced pain in the legs,
• pronounced swelling of the legs,
•  pallor of the skin in the area of thrombosis.

 If pulmonary embolism is suspected:

• sudden shortness of breath,
• shortness of breath cough,
• hemoptysis (blood in sputum),
• sharp pain in the chest,
• increased heart rate.

With ICE, when the following symptoms appear against the background of the underlying disease:

• dyspnea,
• bluish skin,
• bleeding gums nausea,
• vomiting,
• severe pains in the muscles and stomach,
• heart pain,
• decreased urination.

When monitoring anticoagulant therapy.

Test information

D-dimer is a protein fragment that is formed as a result of the breakdown of a blood clot. When a blood vessel or tissue is damaged in the body, the process of blood coagulation is started - the formation of blood clots, which include a special protein, fibrin. It «fastens» the components of the thrombus together and keeps the thrombus where it formed.

Thrombi can occur not only at the site of damage to tissues or vessels, but also inside the vessels in the presence of certain factors: damage to the inner lining of vessels by various endogenous and exogenous substances and antibodies, disturbances in local hemodynamics - blood stagnation, the presence of turbulent flows. Blood clots in blood vessels occur in many diseases: varicose veins of the lower extremities, atrial fibrillation, complicated course of infectious diseases, complications after surgical intervention. In the case of thrombosis, the body starts mechanisms that contribute to the destruction of blood clots, during their work, fibrin begins to be destroyed by plasminogen and D-dimers are formed. Thus, the amount of D-dimers in the blood indicates the activity of the processes of destruction of blood clots and indirectly allows us to assess the activity of thrombus formation.

Most often, this test is used to diagnose DIC syndrome (DIC), as well as to monitor thrombosis therapy with anticoagulants (for example, heparin).

The number of D-dimers can be increased during pregnancy, usually it gradually increases until the III trimester. Until recently, high levels were considered a sign of the threat of developing thrombotic complications during pregnancy, however, research in recent years has shown that there is no clear connection between the level of D-dimer and pregnancy pathology. D-dimer analysis in the vast majority of cases is used as an auxiliary test, and the diagnosis is made taking into account the clinical picture and the results of other studies.