What are the possible reasons I don't clot well?

Question

I have a cut on my finger that won't stop bleeding. It's not bleeding badly, but it's been oozing for about a day now. I have a history of this as well. For instance, I had a dental procedure recently and the bleeding didn't stop completely until after a week. I know most of the common ways to stop bleeding: apply pressure, hold limbs above the heart, etc. But they haven't helped. Any ideas? I'm also concerned about what would happen if I got a major cut.

Answer 1

I don't want to form a diagnosis based on the limited information but from what you have told, you might be suffering from a bleeding/ clotting disorder. Bleeding disorders may be present from birth and show themselves at some stage. They might be acquired for example if you take some medicine like coumadin (warfarin) or other medicines which may cause this side effect.
There might be some nutrient deficency. Some diseases can cause bleeding/ clotting problems for example liver disease, blood disorders etc. My advise is that you need to consult your doctor who will take adequate history. perform suitable tests and help you. There are numerous causes for your problem and you need medical consultation if you feel that something is wrong/ abnormal. If you get a major cut you might bleed heavily. Tests which doctor might perfrom are
clotting screen, blood count including differential count, platelet count etc.

Answer 2

It is good that you are thinking about this now, before you have any major problems. Problems with clotting are usually related to problems with either the platelets or the clotting factors in the blood. As the other poster suggested, aspirin can affect the function of platelets; other antiinflammatory medications, like ibuprofen, etc., can have a similar effect. There can also be a deficiency of platelets. The clotting factors can be decreased, or just one clotting factor can be decreased (as in hemophilia). Here is a web site with a much longer list than this:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001304.htm

Basically, it is something your doctor needs to figure out. I hope you are able to get an answer, and I hope it is nothing serious.

Answer 3

are you on a beta-blocker or taking aspirins=they will cause you to bleed a lot