DIC is a medical emergency where the clotting cascade goes haywire, forming clots everywhere and blocking blood flow to organs, while simultaneously using up all clotting factors so the body can't clot and bleeds out. It has to be recognized and reversed fast.
Here are some DIC key points for your nursing school exams. DIC happens when there is an overstimulation of the clotting cascade and the clotting process in the blood happens systemically and becomes uncontrollable. There's a lot of blood clotting happening uncontrollably throughout the body, which compromises blood flow to the organs and the tissues because ultimately there is only so much blood to go around the body, and if there are areas where the blood is clotting, it will block that blood flow. On top of all of this, the body is running out of clotting factors and it's unable to clot, so it is also hemorrhaging at the same time. DIC is a medical emergency and needs to be reversed quickly.
