Accurate Platelet Counting in an Insidious Case of Pseudothrombocytopenia
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Arnold J. P. F. Lombarts
Abstract
Anticoagulant-induced aggregation of platelets leads to pseudothrombocytopenia. Blood cell counters generally trigger alarms to alert the user. We describe an insidious case of pseudothrombocytopenia, where the complete absence of Coulter counter alarms both in ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid blood and in citrate or acid citrate dextrose blood samples was compounded by the fact that the massive aggregates were exclusively found at the edges of the blood smear. Non-recognition of pseudothrombocytopenia can have serious diagnostic and therapeutic consequences. While the anti-aggregant mixture citrate-theophylline-adenosine-dipyridamole completely failed in preventing pseudothrombocytopenia, addition of iloprost to anticoagulants only partially prevented the aggregation. Only the prior addition of gentamicin to any anticoagulant used resulted in a complete prevention of pseudothrombocytopenia and enabled to count accurately the platelets.
Copyright © 1999 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG
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- Contents
- Subject Index
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Articles in the same Issue
- Author Index
- Contents
- Subject Index
- Strategies for Cardiac Marker Measurement
- Statistical Techniques for Evaluating the Diagnostic Utility of Laboratory Tests
- Magnesium in Disease: a Review with Special Emphasis on the Serum Ionized Magnesium
- Methods for Improving Clinical Trials
- Infrared Analysis of Urinary Stones: a Trial of Automated Identification
- Evaluation of a Direct α-Amylase Assay Using 2-Chloro-4-nitrophenyl-α-D-maltotrioside
- Accurate Platelet Counting in an Insidious Case of Pseudothrombocytopenia
- A New Liquid Homogeneous Assay for HDL Cholesterol Determination Evaluated in Seven Laboratories in Europe and the United States
- Tissue Release of Cardiac Markers: from Physiology to Clinical Applications
- The Specificity of Biochemical Markers of Cardiac Damage: a Problem Solved
- Biochemical Factors Influencing Measurement of Cardiac Troponin I in Serum
- The Sensitivity of Cardiac Markers: an Evidence-based Approach
- Risk Stratification and Therapeutic Decision Making in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndromes the Role of Cardiac Troponin T
- Cardiac Markers: Centralized or Decentralized Testing?
- EC4 European Syllabus for Post-Graduate Training in Clinical Chemistry. Version 2 – 1999
- Plasma Malondialdehyde and Obesity: Is there a Relationship?
- Reference Intervals: Are Interlaboratory Differences Appropriate?
- Lipoprotein Protocols. By J.M. Ordovas, editor
- Tietz Textbook of Clinical Chemistry. By C.A. Burtis and E.R. Ashwood, editors
