Disseminated intravascular coagulation following intravenous Corynebacterium parvum injection in the rat

Abstract

Corynebacterium parvum (C. parvum) was administered by a single IV injection (14 mg/kg) to rats, and platelet counts, plasma fibrinogen concentrations and thrombin clotting times were monitored for up to 7 weeks. During this time histological and ultrastructural studies were also conducted. Thrombocytopoenia, hypofibrinogenaemia, and prolongation of the thrombin clotting time rapidly followed C. parvum injection and were accompanied by the appearance of platelet clumps and fibrin within blood vessels in a variety of tissues. This initial episode of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) subsided 12–24 h after injection, but a more prolonged second episode of DIC occurred 1–3 days after injection. The results suggest that caution should be observed when systemic immunotherapy with C. parvum is proposed.