A study of disseminated intravascular coagulopathy in hepatic coma complicating acute viral hepatitis.

Thirty cases of viral hepatitis with and without coma and 15 normal healthy age and sex matched controls were studied for disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC). Cases of viral hepatitis with coma showed strong evidence of DIC in the form of increased plasma FDP (240 +/- 190.64 dilution), diminished fibrinogen half life (48.1 +/- 15.3 hours) and increased fractional catabolic rate (46.13 +/- 14.7% per day) with normal Euglobulin clot lysis time and reduced fibrinogen (147.33 +/- 43.5%) and platelet count (1.27 +/- 0.324 lakhs/cm.). The possible role of heparin in the reversal of coagulation abnormalities have been discussed.