[Disseminated intravascular coagulation, 113 cases, including 17 children with fulminant purpura].

Between 1964 and 1971, 113 children with the syndrome of disseminated intravascular coagulation were studied at the Hospital Infantil de México, including 17 cases with the diagnosis of fulminant purpura. Comparison was established with reports from foreign institutions. The following conclusions are offered: Fulminant purpura appears after a period of latency following the causal disease. It is not caused by septicemia; shows a clear picture in infants, preschool and school children, with letality index of 17.7%. In Mexico, DIC was caused by infection in 88% of the cases and in 68% of them, the infection started in the digestive tract. The diagnosis of fulminant purpura is based on the clinical picture, while in DIC, the diagnosis must also be based on laboratory tests unless one half of the diagnoses be missed.