Virchow's triad

Virchow's triad is a framework linking thrombosis to three interacting conditions: altered blood flow, endothelial injury, and hypercoagulability.

Thrombosis: Thrombosis is the formation of a blood clot within a blood vessel or heart chamber. It is the outcome the triad's three conditions help explain.
Venous thromboembolism: Venous thromboembolism is a disease process involving deep-vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. The triad is commonly used to organize risk factors for these venous events.
Rudolf Virchow: Rudolf Virchow was a German physician and pathologist who helped establish cellular pathology. The triad bears his name and is linked to his work on thrombosis.
Virchow's tetrad: Virchow's tetrad is an expanded thrombosis framework that adds inflammation to the three factors of Virchow's triad. It makes explicit a factor often treated as part of endothelial injury or hypercoagulability.
Venous stasis: Venous stasis is abnormally slow or stagnant blood flow in the veins. It is a flow disturbance that can promote venous clot formation.
Deep vein thrombosis: Deep vein thrombosis is a blood clot in a deep vein, usually in the leg or pelvis. Stasis, endothelial changes, and hypercoagulability all help explain its risk.
Virchow's 1856 thrombosis theory: Virchow's 1856 thrombosis theory proposed that clot formation involves changes in blood flow, vessel walls, and blood constituents. This historical account underlies the three-part framework, though the standard triad wording developed later.
Arterial thrombosis: Arterial thrombosis is clot formation within an artery, often associated with atherosclerotic plaque disruption. It contrasts with venous thrombosis, where stasis and hypercoagulability often dominate risk.
Endothelial dysfunction: Endothelial dysfunction is impaired regulation of vascular processes by the cells lining blood vessels. It describes how a damaged or activated vessel lining can favor clotting.
Pulmonary embolism: Pulmonary embolism is obstruction of a pulmonary artery, usually by a clot that traveled from a vein. It is a major consequence of venous thrombosis shaped by the triad's risk factors.

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