Fibrinolysis and gastrointestinal haemorrhage.

Most human tissues contain fibrinolytic activators. The alimentary tract organs, however, were not considered to be a site of importance and were not included in a comprehensive survey of human necropsy tissues studied by Albrechtsen.1 But since Cox, Poller, and Thomson2 found local organ fibrinolysis in the stomach and free plasmin in gastric vein blood there has been much interest in the possible role of fibrinolysis in gastrointestinal bleeding. There is also some evidence that similar influences might contribute to bleeding at other sites in the alimentary tract. complementary studies from other centres using a variety of different techniques and approaches.4-8 In a subsequent study from Manchester9 the fibrinolytic potential of the stomach was found in all subjects. Stimulation was applied to the stomach wall by controlled manipulation at laparotomy. There was a gradation of activity. Fig. 1 shows the shortening of the euglobulin lysis time in serial