The trauma triad of death is a medical term describing the combination of hypothermia, acidosis, and coagulopathy.

[1] This combination is commonly seen in patients who have sustained severe traumatic injuries and results in a significant rise in the mortality rate.

[citation needed] The three conditions share a complex relationship; each factor can compound the others, resulting in high mortality if this positive feedback loop continues uninterrupted.

[citation needed] Severe bleeding in trauma diminishes oxygen delivery, and may lead to hypothermia.

In the absence of blood-bound oxygen and nutrients (hypoperfusion), the body's cells burn glucose anaerobically for energy, causing the release of lactic acid, ketone bodies, and other acidic compounds into the blood stream, which lower the blood's pH, leading to metabolic acidosis.