Laboratory diagnosis of thrombophilia by endothelial-cell-modulated coagulation

This study investigated whether the addition of endothelial cells to blood or blood plasma is of value in global laboratory diagnostic testing for thrombotic tendency. Plasma from thrombotic patients and healthy individuals was exposed to human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), in monolayers or suspensions, and fibrin deposition or clotting time, respectively, was registered. The latter was determined by a novel rheometric procedure that also gave information about coagulum rigidity. Plasma from patients (n = 10) tended to deposit more fibrin on HUVEC monolayers than plasma from healthy individuals (n = 10). When mixed with suspended HUVEC, plasma from patients (n = 14) showed shorter clotting times than plasma from healthy individuals [n = 13; 4.79 +/- 1.02 min (mean +/- SD) compared with 6.80 +/- 1.50 min, P < 0.001]. Coagulum rigidity among patients also differed from that of healthy individuals (P < 0.05). The study showed that the addition of endothelial cells to blood plasma is of value in global laboratory diagnostic testing for thrombotic tendency. Blood Coag Fibrinol 10:173-179 (C) 1999 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.