Blood loss

General or Other | General Practice | Blood loss (Disease)


Description

Bleeding also known as hemorrhaging is the loss of blood from the body’s circulatory system.

When blood leaks from blood vessels inside the body is called internal bleeding. Externally bleeding occurs either through a natural opening such as the vagina, mouth, nose, ear or anus, or through a break in the skin.

Hemorrhaging is classified into four classes. Class I Hemorrhage involves up to 15% of blood volume. Class II Hemorrhage involves 15-30% of total blood volume. In this case the patient is often tachycardic (rapid heart beat), but blood transfusion is not typically required. Class III Hemorrhage involves loss of 30-40% of circulating blood volume. In this situation the patients blood pressure drops, the heart rate increases, shock occurs and the mental status worsens. Fluid resuscitation with crystalloid and blood transfusion are usually necessary. Class IV Hemorrhage involves loss of >40% of circulating blood volume. To prevent death aggressive resuscitation is necessary.

Causes and Risk factors

Bleeding arises due to either traumatic injury, underlying medical condition, or a combination. Traumatic bleeding is caused by some type of injury. There are different types of wounds which may cause traumatic bleeding: laceration, abrasion, contusion, ballistic trauma etc. Medical bleeding denotes hemorrhage as a result of an underlying medical condition. Certain medical conditions can also make patients susceptible to bleeding.

Diagnosis and Treatment

The goal of the reatment of blood loss focuses on two areas: stopping the bleeding and treating the effects of blood loss. ...