Fibrinolysis in cerebrospinal fluid after intraventricular haemorrhage.

Concentrations of cross linked fibrin degradation products were measured in the cerebrospinal fluid from five 'normal' preterm infants (median 102 ng/ml), four preterm infants with intraventricular haemorrhage (median 315 ng/ml), and five infants with progressive post-haemorrhagic ventricular dilatation (median 1000 ng/ml). Serial samples of cerebrospinal fluid from one infant showed a peak concentration two weeks after the haemorrhage.