HEMOSTATIC ACTIVATION BEFORE AND AFTER SURGERY IN PATIENTS WITH AND WITHOUT GASTRIC MALIGNANCY

Pre- and postoperative plasma levels of Prothrombin Fragment 1 + 2 (F- 1+2), Thrombin-antithrombin III complex (TAT), Fibrinopeptide A (FpA), Fibrin and Fibrinogen Degradation Products (FbDP, FgDP) and Soluble F ibrin (SF) were measured in 40 patients undergoing gastric surgery in order to compare patients operated for benign (n = 21) and malignant ( n = 19) disease. Plasma levels of F-1+2, TAT, FbDP and SF on the first postoperative day were significantly higher than before operation. F- 1+2 and FbDP levels were further increased one week after surgery, at which time FgDP levels were also higher than preoperatively. A signifi cant postoperative increase in FpA levels was found only in patients w ith malignant disease. When age was taken into consideration, signific ant differences between patients with and without malignancy were foun d only in the late postoperative period, as cancer patients had higher FpA and FbDP levels one week after surgery and higher FbDP levels one month after discharge from hospital.