POC INRs with an APA

From Elizabeth Kreuser: Our pharmacy is using a point of care (POC) device to monitor prothrombin times with international normalized ratios (INRs). However, they have a patient with an anti-phospholipid antibody (APA). We did a quick study using Stago Neoplastin Cl Plus, Stago clotting factor II, and the POC device. Results were: Assay Test 1 Test […]

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Apr 11 2013

george

New Oral A/Cs and POC

A message from Crystal Azevedo, Eastern Maine Medical Center: Hello George, I have a question regarding the new Xa inhibitors and dabigatran and point of care (POC) systems. Is there any known interference in the prothrombin time/international normalized ratio (PT/INR) determination of POC assays when a patient is on one of these medications? We are using the […]

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Apr 5 2013

george

ACD Tubes for Platelet Satellitosis

From Donna Kaiser, St. Joseph Health System: I was wondering if you have any information on using acid citrate dextrose (ACD) tubes for EDTA platelet clumpers. I have heard they may work better than the sodium citrate tubes especially for oncology patients. If so, are Sol A or Sol B tubes being used and is there a […]

Specimen Management

New Quick Question: Preoperative Screens

George has joined a Laboratory Medicine Best Practices panel whose purpose is to review patterns of preoperative coagulation screening panel usage, in particular, preoperative prothrombin times (PT) and partial thromboplastin times (PTT). We are working on the premise that screening PTs and PTTs fail to consistently predict intraoperative hemorrhage in patients who possess no known coagulopathy, and […]

Screening Assays

Megaloblastic Anemia: Audio PowerPoint

The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey’s Clinical Laboratory Science online graduate program is currently offering CLSC 5123, Advanced Hematology. The course leader is Dr. Elaine Keohane. The audio PowerPoint for this week’s topic,Megaloblastic Anemia is posted on our Audio Modules page. We welcome our UMDNJ graduate students to The Fritsma Factor. Please select Megaloblastic Anemia to open the lecture.

Posts

Omaha Presentation Handouts

George substituted for Dave McGlasson and presented, “Monitoring the New Antithrombotics: Whatever Happened to the PT and PTT?” on Wednesday, April 3, 10 AM; and “Antiplatelet Therapy, Do Aspirin and Plavix Work?” on Thursday, April 3, 2:30–2:30 PM at the Great Plains Regional Laboratory Expo in Omaha Nebraska. His presentation handouts, in PDF, appear on our Audio Modules page. Thanks […]

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Apr 2 2013

george

Does Apixaban Affect Clot-based Assays?

From Linda Stang, Alberta Health Services: As apixaban (Eliquis) is sure to start wreaking havoc in some of our special coag assays (read: tests will be ordered while patients are on this drug, but they WON’T tell us…), I did a search for publications about apixaban interference, and found nothing. Does anyone have any experience with interference […]

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Mar 25 2013

george

New Rivaroxaban Indication in Europe

On Friday, March 22 the European Medicines Agency Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use cleared rivaroxaban (Xarelto) for prevention of atherothrombotic events in patients with acute coronary syndrome. EMA made this decision a few weeks after the US FDA disapproved the drug for the same indication. The news release appears on TheHeart.org.

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Mar 18 2013

george

Still More on Dabigatran Risks

Here is a summary of the FDA’s adverse events report suggesting a higher case fatality rate than in the Mini-Sentinel report published in the March 13, 2013 New England Journal of Medicine. The argument continues.

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Anticoagulant Therapy

Mar 18 2013

george

ACT Testing Time Interval

Here is a question from my friend and colleague Kathleen Finnegan, MS MT (ASCP )SH, Chair of the CLS program at Stony Brook University, New York. This question was posted to the ASCLS Consumer Web Forum through Lab Tests Online: “In the procedure room setting (cardiac catheterization or EP lab) what is the standard length of time to wait to […]

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Anticoagulant Therapy

All Posts

POC INRs with an APA

New Oral A/Cs and POC

ACD Tubes for Platelet Satellitosis

New Quick Question: Preoperative Screens

Megaloblastic Anemia: Audio PowerPoint

Omaha Presentation Handouts

Does Apixaban Affect Clot-based Assays?

New Rivaroxaban Indication in Europe

Still More on Dabigatran Risks

ACT Testing Time Interval

George Fritsma MS MLS

Cheat Sheets from George

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