A functional clotting assay to monitor the hirudin dosage.

Hirudin, a direct thrombin inhibitor, has potential advantages over indirect thrombin inhibitors and is increasingly used in clinical settings. There are, however, large variations in individual responses to this drug and no recognized clinical laboratory tests used to monitor its anticoagulant effects. We evaluated the use of the thromboelastograph, a common clinical coagulation instrument, to monitor the effects of hirudin in vitro.

Pravastatin potentiates the anticoagulant effects of low molecular weight heparin.

Introduction: Statins have been shown in randomized trials to reduce coronary events independent of baseline LDL-C level. In the case of pravastatin sodium (PS), there is conflicting evidence as to what is the actual mechanism of its non-lipid lowering beneficial effects. Because pravastatin has been found to prolong the clotting time in vitro, we conducted a study to determine if pravastatin plus low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) would result in a synergistic effect on the in vitro clotting time, thus supporting the hypothesis that pravastatin exerts antithrombotic effects through reduction of fibrin formation.

Effect of methylprednisolone on coagulation.

This in vitro study examined the effects of methylprednisolone on coagulation status. Venous blood samples were collected from 12 adult subjects including healthy volunteers and patients presenting to the emergency department and analyzed for coagulation changes using the modified recalcification time (MRT) test prior to and after the addition of methylprednisolone. Mean +/- SD MRT control values before the addition of methylprednisolone (MRTC) and after (MRTCP) were 5.

Influence of storage on red blood cell rheological properties.

Background: It is known that the age of transfused blood is a risk factor for the development of multiple organ failure in surgical patients. However, the character of hemorrheological changes in stored blood as well as the time when they appear remains disputable. We assumed that blood storage was accompanied by a progressive decrease of RBC deformability and rheological disorders.

Nasal toxicity of cocaine: a hypercoagulable effect?

Nasal insufflation of cocaine injures the nasal mucosa and can perforate the septum. Cocaine-induced vasoconstriction resulting in ischemia is one of the methods that may be responsible for this damage. We are determining whether cocaine also produces a hypercoagulable state that may compound factors which have been previously established to cause damage to the nasal mucosa and septum.