The key difference between thrombosis and coagulation is that thrombosis is a serious condition where one or more blood clots develop in blood vessels or the heart unnecessarily, while coagulation is a normal process by which blood changes from liquid to gel in order to stop the blood loss from a damaged vessel.
Thrombosis and coagulation are both associated with blood clot formation. Thrombosis is a life-threatening emergency where blood clots unnecessarily develop in blood vessels or heart chambers. This can disrupt the blood flowing to the organs. On the other hand, coagulation or blood clotting is a normal body process where blood clots are formed in order to stop excessive bleeding. It is a part of the normal repair mechanism.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Thrombosis
3. What is Coagulation
4. Similarities – Thrombosis and Coagulation
5. Thrombosis vs Coagulation in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Thrombosis vs Coagulation
What is Thrombosis?
Thrombosis is the process of forming a blood clot or thrombus inside one of the blood vessels or a chamber of your heart. This is a life-threatening condition since it can disrupt the blood flow to the organs. The symptoms of this condition may include pain in one leg, such as in the calf or inner thigh, swelling in the leg or arm, chest pain, numbness or weakness on one side of the body, and mental changes.
Figure 01: Thrombosis
Thrombosis can be caused by a disease or injury to the leg veins, broken bones, certain medicines, obesity, inherited disorders, or a greater likelihood of having a certain disorder based on genes, autoimmune conditions, medicines that increase the risk of clotting, and hardening of the arteries called arteriosclerosis.
Thrombosis can be diagnosed through ultrasound, blood tests, venography, MRI, and CT scan. Treatment options for thrombosis include blood-thinning medicines (anticoagulants), thin tubes or catheters to widen the affected vessels, a stent that holds a blood vessel open and stops it from closing, and medicines to dissolve blood clots.
What is Coagulation?
Coagulation or clotting is the process in which blood changes from a liquid to a gel. It is potentially a step in the body’s hemostasis. Coagulation causes the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel. Therefore, it is a part of the body’s repair mechanism.
Figure 02: Coagulation
The coagulation process involves steps such as activation, adhesion and aggregation of platelets, and deposition and maturation of fibrin. Coagulation usually begins instantly after an injury to the endothelium lining a blood vessel. Moreover, disorders that are caused due to problems in the coagulation may include hemophilia, Von Willebrand disease, clotting factor deficiencies, hypercoagulable states, and deep venous thrombosis. Furthermore, coagulation is almost conserved, and in all mammals, it involves both cellular components (platelets) and proteinaceous components (coagulation factors).
What are the Similarities Between Thrombosis and Coagulation?
- Thrombosis and coagulation are both associated with blood clot formation.
- In both conditions, the blood turns from liquid form to gel form.
- Platelets and coagulation factors are involved in both processes.
- Problems in coagulation lead to disorders like thrombosis.
What is the Difference Between Thrombosis and Coagulation?
Thrombosis is a serious condition where one or more blood clots develop in the blood vessels or heart unnecessarily, while coagulation is a normal process by which blood transforms from liquid to gel, stopping the blood loss from a damaged vessel. Thus, this is the key difference between thrombosis and coagulation. Furthermore, thrombosis is a rare condition, while coagulation is a common body process.
The below infographic presents the differences between thrombosis and coagulation in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Thrombosis vs Coagulation
Thrombosis and coagulation are both associated with blood clot formation, where blood turns from liquid form to gel form. Thrombosis is a life-threatening emergency, while coagulation is a regular body process in the repair mechanism. In thrombosis, the development of one or more blood clots in the blood vessels or heart can be seen. In coagulation, blood changes from liquid to gel as a part of the normal process in order to stop blood loss from a damaged vessel. So, this summarizes the difference between thrombosis and coagulation.
Reference:
1. “Thrombosis: What You Need to Know.” Cleveland Clinic.
2. “Coagulation – An Overview.” ScienceDirect Topics.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Coagulation in vivo” By Dr Graham Beards – Own work (Based on Figure 7.5 on page 167 “Blood Science: principles and pathology” by Andrew Blann and Nessar Ahmed, Publishers Wiley Blackwell (2014) ISBN:978-1-118-35146-8) (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Thrombosis of the pulmonary artery Wellcome L0061551” By Welcome Image Gallery (CC BY 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia