CIEMT Medical and Physiology Practice Exam

Coagulation is the process of blood clot formation. It’s the part of hemostasis that stabilizes a platelet plug by creating a fibrin mesh that holds the clot together and prevents further bleeding. This happens through a cascade of clotting factors that become activated in a regulated sequence, with both the intrinsic and extrinsic pathways converging to activate thrombin, which converts soluble fibrinogen into insoluble fibrin. The resulting fibrin network traps blood cells and solidifies the clot. The flow of plasma refers to fluid movement, not clotting; activation of white blood cells is an immune response; and breakdown of clots is fibrinolysis. So coagulation specifically means forming a clot.