Blood Fibrin in Upper Gastrointestinal Tract Obstruction

Abstract

Foster and Whipple (1-4) have studied the blood fibrin in a number of experimental conditions. They have shown that fibrin is a very labile protein with wide fluctuations due to a variety of stimuli. The site of production is mainly the liver where there is a constant manufacture to supply the continuous utilization in the animal body. Injury to any tissue except the liver causes some increase in the fibrin content of the blood. If the liver is seriously injured a decrease is observed. With mild liver injury there is a rise instead of a fall.Dead or injured tissue and non-specific inflammation seem the only factors needed to excite an increased production, It seems quite probable also that any cell injury even without inflammatory reaction will cause this characteristic rise. McLester (5) has attempted to utilize blood fibrin determinations as an index of liver function. Foster (6) made fibrin determinations in numerous clinical conditions. He found a marked elevation with the toxemia of pregnancy, the fibrin level running parallel with the severity of the symptoms. With nephritis no increase was observed. Liver atrophy showed a very low value and lobar pneumonia a very high value.We have made a series of plasma fibrin determinations for comparison with data previously observed in the toxemia incident to upper gastrointestinal tract obstruction. Methods.All experiments were done on dogs. All operations were done under anesthesia with aseptic technique. The cardiac end of the stomach and pylorus were obstructed by ligation with tape. The jejunum was obstructed by severing the intestine and turning in the cut ends. The hematocrit reading was obtained by centrifuging 10 cc. of blood mixed with 2 cc. of 1.6 per cent sodium oxalate. The