Cardiovascular diseases are important causes of morbidity and mortality in the industrialized world. Abnormalities in the coagulation system, causing a hypercoagulable state, are a known risk factor for arterial and venous thrombosis. The contact activation system is part of the coagulation system and consists of four proteins: coagulation factor XII (FXII), FXI, prekallikrein and high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK). Clinical studies indicate an important role for the contact activation system on the risk of arterial thrombosis. Furthermore, there is substantial evidence from mouse studies that FXII and FXI participate in the formation and stability of thrombi. In vitro studies show that collagen, present in the vascular wall, is able to activate FXII and hereby stimulate thrombin formation and potentiate the formation of platelet-fibrin thrombi and FXIIa is able to change the structure of fibrin clots by binding to fibrin(ogen) and by generation of additional thrombin. However, the contact system also participates in the process of fibrinolysis, which degrades thrombi.