Scandinavian journal of clinical and laboratory investigation
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Scand. J. Clin. Lab. Invest. · Jul 2012
Comparative StudyReproducibility of thrombelastometry (ROTEM®): point-of-care versus hospital laboratory performance.
Thrombelastometry (ROTEM®) has gained wide acceptance in detecting and tailoring acquired hemostatic changes in adults and children. We investigated in this observational trial whether the reproducibility of this point-of-care testing was influenced by performance at the bedside or in the hospital laboratory. In addition, difference in time of performance between both measurements was compared. ⋯ Minor differences were found for the InTEM clot formation time (CFT) showing a mean bias of 10.79 seconds. Time saving was 11 minutes (8-16 minutes) if ROTEM® measurements were performed bedside (p < 0.001). In conclusion, there were minimal effects on ROTEM® measurements irrespective of whether they were performed in the hospital laboratory or at the bedside by a single trained staff member, while the latter saved valuable time.