Advanced Clotting Blood Test

Some conditions can prevent blood from clotting properly, may cause the blood to clot too easily or cause clots to remain in the body for too long. Clotting tests are often used to monitor those taking anticoagulants - medications that decrease the ability of the blood to clot.

This test evaluates the clotting tendency of blood and the time it takes for clots to form using the standard measures of prothrombin time, APTT and the International Normalised Ratio (INR) which is derived from the prothrombin time. Fibrinogen is a protein that aids in the formation of blood clots. Low levels of fibrinogen are sometimes seen in cases of excessive clotting, such as disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Platelets (or clotting cells) are the smallest type of blood cell and are important in the blood clotting process. A raised platelet count may indicate an elevated risk of clots forming in the blood, while a low count may mean that you bruise easily or suffer from uncontrolled bleeding.