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February, 2022 QQ Response: Platelet Aggs

Thanks to our 57 FF participants for your responses to our February 2022 Quick Question. The question stem was: “What single agonist is your first choice to measure platelet response to aspirin?” ADP: 14% [8] TRAP: 2% [1] Collagen: 2% [1] Epinephrine: 28% [16] Arachidonic acid: 54% [31] Although this question is a poll, my […]

Arterial Thrombosis

CAP Today: Specimen Collection

Here are two CAP Today front-page articles featuring Dorothy Adcock, MD and Richard Marlar, PhD regarding coagulation specimen collection: September 2021: In Coag Collections, Every Detail Counts February 2022: Steps to Preventing Coag Test Processing Error These are richly referenced articles that draw attention to International Council for Standardization in Haematology guidelines.

Specimen Management

Measuring DOACs

Here is a helpful article from the January 17, 2022 issue of CAP Today: “Measuring Direct Oral Anticoagulants—When, How.”

Anticoagulant Therapy

PIVKA

George is updating a book chapter and asks if there is a reason to continue using the phrase “proteins induced by vitamin K absence/antagonists” [PIVKA], now termed des-gamma-carboxy- II, VII, IX, or X. Does any laboratory continue to offer a PIVKA assay?

Anticoagulant Therapy

FDP and D-dimer

A question for discussion. Is there any clinical reason to test for both fibrin degradation products [FDPs] and D-dimer?

COVID-19: VWF/ADAMTS13 Balance

Thanks to Brandon Michael Henry MD, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center for drawing attention to his award-winning review, co-authored with Drs. Emmanuel Favaloro and Giuseppe Lippi, which details the relationship between von Willebrand factor and ADAMTS13 and applies the VWF/ADAMTS13 activity ratio to the thrombotic progression of the SARS-CoV2 infection. The authors review 67 primary […]

Arterial Thrombosis

February 2022 Cheat Sheet

Our February 2022 Cheat Sheet is attached. Please contact George at [email protected] if you’d like a push copy to arrive in your mailbox.

February, 2022 Quick Question: Platelet Aggs

Our February 2022 Quick Question asks, What single agonist is your first choice to measure platelet response to aspirin? The typical aggregation profile includes several agonists, however it may be that one is more sensitive to aspirin’s antiplatelet effect than the others. As always, please add your comments below.

Antiplatelet Therapy

January 2022 Quick Question: Case Study

We had 58 responses to our January 2022 Quick Question. The stem asked, “A patient experiences soft tissue bleeding and poor wound healing. The PT, PTT, and TT are normal. What follow-up profile do you recommend? Factors VIII, IX, & XI assays: 10% [6] PAI-1 & D-dimer assays: 0 Thrombosis risk profile: 2% [1] Platelet […]

Bleeding Disorders

Chromogenic Vs. Clot-based Gene Transfer FVIII Assays

This article in Blood illustrates the disparity between chromogenic and clot-based factor VIII assays when measuring factor VIII activity produced by hemophilic recipients of gene transfer factor VIII: Rosen S, Tiefenbacker S, Robinson M, et al. Activity of transgene-produced B-domain–deleted factor VIII in human plasma following AAV5 gene therapy. Blood 2020;136:2524–34. Thanks to Dean Willett, […]

Bleeding Disorders

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George Fritsma is a medical laboratory scientist, educator, and author. George is a member of the International Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis, the International Society for Laboratory Hematology, and the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science.

Cheat Sheets from George

Quick Question