Alamgir Hosen Ronit: Corrected Platelet Count in EDTA Induced Platelet Aggregation
Alamgir Hosen Ronit, Medical Laboratory Technologist at BIRDEM General Hospital, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Corrected Platelet Count in EDTA Induced Platelet Aggregation
This condition occurs when platelets aggregate after blood collection in an EDTA tube. EDTA, the anticoagulant, can trigger antibodies to bind to platelet surface antigens, leading to platelet aggregation.
As a result, the platelet count appears falsely low, a phenomenon known as pseudothrombocytopenia.
Effects:
- Automated hematology analyzers may report a falsely low platelet count because aggregated platelets are not counted properly.
- The CBC result may show thrombocytopenia, even though the patient’s true platelet count is normal.
Corrective Actions and Confirmation:
Examine a peripheral blood smear
Platelet clumping (platelet aggregation) will be observed.
Recollect blood in a sodium citrate tube (blue top)
- This helps reduce or prevent EDTA-induced platelet aggregation.
- The sample should be analyzed for platelet count only.
- The reported platelet count must then be multiplied by 1.1 to obtain the true value.
Why multiply by 1.1?
When blood is collected in a sodium citrate tube, the anticoagulant causes dilution of the blood sample.
The standard ratio is:
‘Blood-to-sodium citrate ratio is 9 : 1’
Therefore, the measured platelet count is approximately 10% lower than the true value.
To correct for this dilution effect:
Corrected platelet count is measured platelet count multiplied by 1.1″
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