The ability of the body to maintain a state of homeostasis, or physiological equilibrium, is essential for the practical, efficient functionality of all body systems. The mechanisms involved in blood coagulation, also known as hemostasis or blood clotting, illustrate this concept. Hemostasis is the process that leads to the cessation of bleeding from a blood vessel. Regarding blood flow, we maintain homeostasis through this process.
With the maintenance of homeostasis in mind, it is vital that the body be able to rapidly repair vascular damage, arresting blood flow while simultaneously maintaining blood in a fluid state within the vascular compartment. Blood flow is arrested through a complex series of interrelated physiological and biochemical processes. There are a wide variety of factors that influence the effectiveness of hemostatic processes, including the following:
- Type and degree of vessel damage
- Ability of vasoconstriction to occur
- Availability of platelets and their functionality
- Availability of clotting factors and their functionality
- Absence of inhibitors and anticoagulants
