Figure 1.

(A) Following an isolated injury to the musculoskeletal system, the survival phase of the acute‐phase response (APR) exists to contain the injury by activating coagulation and the innate immune system to prevent bleeding and infection, respectively. During survival APR, thrombin‐mediated fibrin formation and survival inflammation fuel one another (black arrows) to effectively contain damage and prime the tissue for reparative cells and proteases. (B) Once the injury is contained, the body enters the repair phase of the APR, during which plasmin is activated to remove fibrin deposited during survival, promote macrophage function, and to stimulate matrix remodeling and angiogenesis (black arrows). A normal APR resolves the injury without complications. (C) A severe or traumatic injury provokes a pathologic APR in which plasmin is activated during survival causing bleeding complications, or it is shut down, increasing risk of thrombosis and (D) provoking persistent fibrin deposition and poor tissue repair later in convalescence. Modified from Figure 1 of ³