Christina Weidhofer1, Elias Meyer2, Robin Ristl2, Helmut Wiedemann3, Janne Cadamuro3, Ulrike Kipman4, Jakob Zierk5, Christoph Male6, Peter Quehenberger1, Elisabeth Haschke-Becher3, Elisa Einwallner7. 1. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. 2. Institute of Medical Statistics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. 3. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria. 4. Kipman - High End Statistics, Hallein, Austria. 5. Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany. 6. Department of Paediatrics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. 7. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: elisa.einwallner@meduniwien.ac.at.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Practical and ethical challenges as well as time and costs have restricted the generation of pediatric reference intervals. Therefore, pediatric reference intervals on coagulation parameters based on solid evidence are still scarce. Furthermore, reference intervals by age-group cannot reflect the dynamics of age and sex specific coagulation values during childhood. This study is the first to close this gap and provide continuous age and sex dependent reference intervals during childhood in hemostasis. METHODS: We used an innovative indirect method for providing continuous reference intervals for five common coagulation parameters: Activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), prothrombin time (PT), thrombin clotting time (TT), fibrinogen (FIB) and antithrombin (AT). Calculations were performed using retrospective laboratory data from pediatric patients between 2005 and 2015 of two major Austrian hospitals, resulting in a total of 195.360 measurements (aPTT: 55,100; PT: 35,492; TT: 35,295; FIB: 49,789; AT: 19,684). RESULTS: This multicenter study provides calculations of continuous reference intervals for five common coagulation parameters in a large pediatric cohort, accounting for age and gender. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first multicenter study, determining continuous pediatric coagulation reference intervals based on a large retrospective dataset.
INTRODUCTION: Practical and ethical challenges as well as time and costs have restricted the generation of pediatric reference intervals. Therefore, pediatric reference intervals on coagulation parameters based on solid evidence are still scarce. Furthermore, reference intervals by age-group cannot reflect the dynamics of age and sex specific coagulation values during childhood. This study is the first to close this gap and provide continuous age and sex dependent reference intervals during childhood in hemostasis. METHODS: We used an innovative indirect method for providing continuous reference intervals for five common coagulation parameters: Activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), prothrombin time (PT), thrombin clotting time (TT), fibrinogen (FIB) and antithrombin (AT). Calculations were performed using retrospective laboratory data from pediatric patients between 2005 and 2015 of two major Austrian hospitals, resulting in a total of 195.360 measurements (aPTT: 55,100; PT: 35,492; TT: 35,295; FIB: 49,789; AT: 19,684). RESULTS: This multicenter study provides calculations of continuous reference intervals for five common coagulation parameters in a large pediatric cohort, accounting for age and gender. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first multicenter study, determining continuous pediatric coagulation reference intervals based on a large retrospective dataset.