[Level of fibrinogen/fibrin degradation products (F/FDP) in certain internal diseases]

Serum FDPs were investigated in 30 healthy and 95 patients with pulmonary thrombembolia, not-stabilized angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, rheumatism, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus erythematodes and dermatomyositis. FDPs are determined by hemagglutination inhibition according to Merskey. They are found in the sera of the healthy in average values of 3.73 mkgr/ml. The highest average values in the first 24 h were found in case of pulmonary thrombembolia up to 106.64 mkgr/ml, followed by rheumatoid arthritis 26.3 mkgr/ml, myocardial infarction with complication 22.4 mkgr/ml, rheumatism +5.58 mkgr/ml, not-stabilized angina pectoris 5.5 mkgr/ml; and noncomplicated myocardial infarction 4.3 mkgr/ml. By the third day of the disease FDP in pulmonary thrombembolia decreased, whereas a negligible elevation was observed in case of non-complicated myocardial infarction. The results were interpreted as well as the cause for the presence of the mentioned products in those groups of diseases. FDP determination is recommended as a routine method in case of: diagnosis of pulmonary thrombembolia, differentiation of myocardial infarction with or without complications, differentiation of pulmonary thrombembolia from myocardial infarction in emergency states, progressing with chest pain, collapse phenomena, dyspnea and establishment of the activity of the process of rheumatoid arthritis. FDP determination in stenocardia and rheumatism is not expedient.