What is a D-dimer test?

 

What is a D-dimer test?

A D-dimer test looks for D-dimer in blood. D-dimer is a protein fragment (small piece) that's made when a blood clot dissolves in your body.

Blood clotting is an important process that prevents you from losing too much blood when you are injured. Normally, your body will dissolve the clot once your injury has healed. With a blood clotting disorder, clots can form when you don't have an obvious injury or don't dissolve when they should. These conditions can be very serious and even life-threatening. A D-dimer test can show if you have one of these conditions.

Other names: fragment D-dimer, fibrin degradation fragment.

What is it used for?

A D-dimer test is most often used to find out whether you have a blood clotting disorder. These disorders include:

• Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that's deep inside a vein. These clots usually affect the lower legs, but they can also happen in other parts of the body.
• Pulmonary embolism (PE), a blockage in an artery in the lungs. It usually happens when a blood clot in another part of the body breaks loose and travels to the lungs. DVT clots are a common cause of PE.
• Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), a condition that causes too many blood clots to form. They can form throughout the body, causing organ damage and other serious complications. DIC may be caused by traumatic injuries or certain types of infections or cancer.
• Stroke, a blockage in the blood supply to the brain