What defines haemorrhage?

• A. Loss of blood from the vessels
• B. Increase in blood pressure
• C. Loss of plasma volume
• D. Formation of a clot

Answer: (A)

Haemorrhage is the escape of blood from the vascular system through damaged vessels. It can be external, evident as visible bleeding, or internal, where blood leaks into tissues or body cavities but the defining feature remains blood moving out of the vessels.

An increase in blood pressure isn’t what defines a haemorrhage; it can contribute to vessel rupture, but the event itself is the loss of blood from the vessels. Loss of plasma volume describes a reduction in the liquid component of blood and isn’t the same as blood escaping from vessels. The formation of a clot is the body’s response to a bleed, helping to stop haemorrhage, not the definition of the bleeding itself.