Disorders of the blood coagulation-fibrinolytic system

Most human cells have no direct contact with the external environment and their living conditions are ensured by blood. An essential criterion for normal blood circulation is the ability of the blood to arrest bleeding at sites of tissue injury and to prevent thrombus formation inside the blood vessels under normal conditions. The balance between these two extreme states is rigorously controlled by cellular and molecular components such as the endothelial cells, hepatocytes, platelets and the blood coagulation-fibrinolytic system, and is designated as normal hemostasis. Any disorganization in hemostasis may lead to hemorrhagic or/and thrombotic disease; the latter is the most serious medical problem of our time in developed countries. The purpose of this chapter is to survey the role of the blood coagulation-librillolytic system in hemostasis, its pathological alterations and treatmellt of the disorders.