Haemostasis: Also spelled hemostasis, this is the process in which the body ensures that it does not by accident bleed out too much blood when the vasculature and skin is injured. Thru this process, the body manages equilibrium concerning blood not clotting quickly enough and blood clotting too much. The body utilizes procedures for adjusting the clotting procedure that limits clotting as well as dissolving clots that are no longer needed. Any anomaly in any portion of this system that manages bleeding may lead to bleeding that is excessive or excessive clotting – both of which are not good. If the system clots too much, the patient develops clots where clots do not need to be developed, for instance in deep vein thrombosis where a clot forms in the leg and then travels thru the vasculature system into the lungs where if the clot is large enough, it can get lodged in the pulmonary artery triggering a fatal pulmonary embolism. Additionally, if the body does not clot sufficiently, even the most minor, small cut results in the patient bleeding to death.

Haemostasis is managed thru 4 major mechanism passageways, and these include: vascular spasm; formation of platelet plug; coagulation as well as dissolution/clot retraction.