Posted: April 29, 2021
CLOT CLUB David L. McGlasson, MS, MLS(ASCP) Lupus Anticoagulants/Antiphospholipid Antibodies/Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Part II Testing for Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Platelet-Poor Plasma (PPP) The quality of the patient’s PPP greatly affects the integrity of the testing. To obtain PPP, the capped citrated specimen is centrifuged at room temperature for at least 15 minutes at 1500–2500 Xg.…
Posted: March 29, 2021
CLOT CLUB David L. McGlasson, MS, MLS(ASCP) Lupus Anticoagulants/Antiphospholipid Antibodies/Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Part I The late Douglas A. Triplett, MD, PhD, who was a colossal figure in the field of Coagulation, paraphrased Winston Churchill in describing a lupus anticoagulant/antiphospholipid antibody as: “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” In other words, a difficult…
Posted: March 15, 2021
– Contributed by Abi Kasberg, PhD Hemoglobins are protein molecules found in red blood cells (RBCs) that functionally transport oxygen from the lungs to the cells of the body and to shuttle carbon dioxide back to the lungs. Hemoglobins also play important roles in maintaining RBC shape by dynamically changing conformation through binding oxygen.…
Posted: February 16, 2021
-Contributed by Abi Kasberg, PhD One of the many complicated outcomes associated with severe cases of COVID-19 is the high occurrence of thrombotic and microthrombotic events. SARS-CoV-2-induced endothelial injury drives elevated inflammatory responses that promote dysregulated coagulation systems, in a condition named COVID-19-associated coagulopathy (CAC). The severity of CAC is associated with the onset of…
Posted: December 8, 2020
David L. McGlasson, MS, MLS(ASCP) The recent THSNA meeting that was supposed to held in Chicago, IL from October 27-30, 2020 was held in a virtual meeting setting. This seems to be the theme this year for all of the professional events that have been affected by the world-wide COVID-19 pandemic. The one thing I…
Posted: October 2, 2020
– Contributed by Abi Kasberg, PhD The novel coronavirus worldwide pandemic of 2020 is infecting and claiming lives at a rapid rate. Infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can lead to severe acute respiratory distress and multiple system organ failure in a disease called COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 enters cells by endocytosis through binding…
Posted: September 25, 2020
Activated Protein C Resistance (APCR), Factor V Leiden (FVL), and a Case Report of a Family with the presence of FVL over 5 generations. Prior to 1992 the special coagulation laboratory performed testing on three inherited thrombotic risk factors. Antithrombin (formerly known as ATIII), Protein C, and Protein S deficiencies were implicated in venous thromboembolism…
Posted: September 3, 2020
– Contributed by Abi Kasberg, PhD The global pandemic caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has captured the attention of researchers, medical professionals, governments, and nearly everyone worldwide. The scientific and medical communities are forming collaborations, gathering data, developing therapeutics, and communicating findings at a swift speed. Indeed, it can be a challenge to stay informed…
Posted: August 18, 2020
The recent ISTH 2020 meeting that was supposed to be held in Milan, Italy was still a success even in a virtual setting. As always, the topics were extremely informative. The addition of ISTH TV was an innovative way of presenting new information in a roundtable format with top members of the coagulation community. The…
Posted: August 3, 2020
THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND THE ISSUE(S) OF ANTICOAGULATION-Part II Since writing Part I of COVID-19 and Clotting Clot Club, we in the United States have seen the numbers of confirmed cases of the virus jump from approximately 300,000 to over 3,000,000 infected in the last two months. With that massive increase, we have had to…