Key result
Current platelet function tests do not adequately predict clinical bleeding risk associated with antiplatelet therapy because they only reflect early stages of hemostatic activity.
Why the study?
Does platelet function testing predict clinical bleeding in patients on antiplatelet therapy?
Does platelet function testing predict clinical bleeding in patients on antiplatelet therapy?
Current platelet function tests are insufficient to predict clinical bleeding risk in patients on antiplatelet therapy, highlighting the need for tests that incorporate physiological conditions.
Antiplatelet therapy using aspirin and clopidogrel has become a standard treatment for the prevention of cardiovascular thrombosis. Various methods of platelet function testing that can be useful in assessing the residual platelet reactivity on treatment have been developed (light transmission aggregometry, VerifyNow, Multiplate, etc). One of the most serious adverse events associated with antiplatelet therapy is an increased risk of bleeding, especially in a patient requiring urgent surgery. However, there are few data available to support the correlation between the degree of platelet inhibition and clinical bleeding. Because of anticoagulation, most platelet function tests only reflect early stages of hemostatic activity after vascular injury, precluding thrombin generation and fibrin formation. To predict the risk of bleeding associated with the use of antiplatelet agents, platelet function tests that incorporate physiological conditions including shear rates and organ-specific concentrations of activators (eg, collagen and/or tissue factor) are needed.
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Tanaka et al. (2011) conducted an editorial in Bleeding risk on antiplatelet therapy. Platelet function testing was evaluated on Clinical bleeding. Current platelet function tests do not adequately predict clinical bleeding risk associated with antiplatelet therapy because they only reflect early stages of hemostatic activity.
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