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May 2020 Quick Question: D-dimer

Colleague Dave McGlasson commented that some of the Covid articles from China reported D-dimer and fibrin degradation products (FDPs) on their critically ill patients, prompting our May, 2020 Quick Question, What assay do you use to monitor disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)? If you answer “neither,” please indicate in the comments section if you use one […]

April, 2020 Quick Question: HEMLIBRA Results

Our April, 2020 Quick Question was: “How does your facility measure factor VIII during HEMLIBRA therapy?” Here are our answers from 29 respondents: a. One-stage PTT-based FVIII assay: 17% (5) b. Two-stage chromogenic FVIII assay: 45% (13) c. PTT-based assay calibrated to emicizumab: 10% (3) d. There is no reliable assay: 28% (8) Dr. Ali […]

Bleeding Disorders

ISTH Virtual Congress

Thanks to Elaine Benoit, Precision BioLogic Inc. for current information about the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis’s Virtual 2020 Congress, planned for July 12–14. Registration is free. Click or tap here for the ISTH announcement and registration.

Covid and Hemostasis

On April 22, the Washington Post published an informative and alarming article on the relationship between Covid infection and hemostatic abnormalities. Critical Covid cases involve sepsis and abnormal hemostasis, primarily venous thromboembolic disease. The most current and authoritative resources for VTE management are the American Society of Hematology Covid Q&A site, https://lnkd.in/eDeurb7, and the Anticoagulation […]

Anticoagulant Therapy

World Hemophilia Day

Today, April 23, 2020 is World Hemophilia Day. Click or tap here and visit the World Federation of Hemophilia site, where you find in-depth information and a webinar featuring care for hemophiliacs in the face of Covid-19. Our sponsor, Precision BioLogic Inc. is an annual WHD sponsor.

Bleeding Disorders

More on Covid Testing

Thanks to Bob Gosselin for this current comprehensive Guiseppi Lippi review of Covid testing–click or tap here.

DRVVT Controls

A brief question from friend and colleague Kirk Guyer, BioMedica Diagnostics, Inc: When a coag lab runs controls for DRVVRT, do they analyze the controls only based on clotting time or do they also use the ratio as a pass/fail criteria? We’ve had two answers so far. Frequent contributor Dave McGlasson checks the ratio for […]

Covid and Porphyrin

This is an “off-label” post, as it doesn’t directly address hemostasis, however, on April 6, Ari Elman, MD, Hem-Onc at Greater Baltimore Medical Center wrote, “As I’m sure you have, I have been reading report after report regarding these patients and trying to find some understanding of the pathophysiology that might help in treatment. A […]

More on Covid Specimen Management

Please refer to our April 6, 2020 Covid discussion [click or tap] for a valuable 6 PM comment from Precision BioLogic friend and colleague, Ali Sadeghi-Khomami, who directs Precision’s research team, Ali has provided valuable specimen management information. Meanwhile, the following is a helpful follow-up on the topic of standard precautions, or what George still […]

Specimen Management

Covid Specimen Storage

From friend and colleague, Heather DeVries, Indiana University Health: Hi, George. As I am sure you are aware, we are seeing some very high dimers now surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. An email was sent from one of our sites to the entire system that they may want to save those samples for future validation studies […]

Specimen Management

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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

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