A patient was admitted to the critical care unit with gram-negative sepsis 5 days ago.Today there is continual oozing from his intravenous sites, and ecchymosis of the skin is noted beneath his automatic blood pressure cuff.On his laboratory work, his platelets are normal, and his international normalized ratio is elevated.What other laboratory value would be most valuable in definitively diagnosing the patient's condition?
A) Fibrin split products
B) D-Dimer level
C) Bleeding time
D) White blood cell count

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

D-Dimers are exclusively indicative of clot degradation and assist in determining the degree of coagulopathy.

A Patient Was Admitted to the Critical Care Unit with Gram-Negative