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Background Lupus anticoagulant (LA)-detection in anticoagulated patients is an unmet need, which becomes even more cogent with the introduction of direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) that may lead to false-positive results. Aims We aimed to investigate the effect of a commercially available DOAC absorbent on residual drug concentrations, and on integrated procedures for LA-detection. Methods Blood from patients treated for atrial fibrillation with either dabigatran (n = 39), rivaroxaban (n = 55), apixaban (n = 47) or edoxaban (n = 47) were collected at peak and trough, and centralized for testing with two LA integrated procedures [i.e., the silica clotting time (SCT) and dilute Russel viper venom (dRVVT)] before and after DOAC absorbent exposure. Results The commercially available DOAC absorbent investigated in this study proved effective in reducing the concentrations of all the investigated DOAC, although small residual drug was detected after absorption, especially in patients on edoxaban. Results mimicking LA were observed in patients on DOAC before absorbent exposure, especially for rivaroxaban when testing was performed with dRVVT (88% rate at peak and 20% at trough) and much less with SCT (12% at peak and 8% at trough). The correspondent rate of results mimicking LA in patients on rivaroxaban after exposure was reduced [dRVVT (peak 8%, trough 4%); SCT (peak and trough 8%)], but not abolished. Conclusions Overall, in vitro DOAC absorbance by active charcoal compounds is a useful laboratory tool for LA-detection in patients on DOAC. Caution should however be exerted when used in daily practice.

Primary brain tumors are associated with an increased risk of pulmonary embolism (PE), particularly in the early post-operative period. The pathophysiological mechanisms of PE are poorly understood. This study aims to describe prospectively extracellular vesicles (EVs) levels and investigate whether or not their variations allow to identify patients at increased risk of post-operative PE. Consecutive meningioma or glioma patients candidate to tumor resection were included in the study if a pulmonary perfusion scan (Q-scan) performed before surgery ruled out PE. EVs derived from platelets (CD41+) or endothelial cells (CD144+), tissue factor-bearing EVs (CD142+) and their procoagulant subtype (annexin V+) were analyzed by flow cytometry before surgery (T0), within 24 h (T1), two (T2) and seven days (T7) after surgery. Q-scan was repeated at T2. Ninety-three patients with meningioma, 59 with glioma and 76 healthy controls were included in the study. CD142+ and annexin V+/CD142+ EVs were increased at T0 in meningioma and glioma patients compared to healthy controls. Twenty-nine meningioma (32%) and 16 glioma patients (27%) developed PE at T2. EVs levels were similar in meningioma patients with or without PE, whereas annexin V+ and annexin V+/CD142+ EVs were significantly higher at T1 and T2 in glioma patients with PE than in those without. Procoagulant EVs, particularly annexin V+/CD142+, increase after surgery and are more prevalent in glioma patients who developed PE after surgery than in those who did not.

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with systemic inflammation, which may dysregulate platelet function. Total Thrombus-Formation Analysis System (T-TAS) is a flow-chamber device that analyses platelet-mediated thrombus formation in capillary channels through the following parameters: (1) the area under the flow-pressure curve (AUC), (2) occlusion start time (OST), time needed to reach OST, and (3) occlusion time (OT), time needed to reach the occlusion pressure. Methods and Findings Sixty-one COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive, subintensive, and low intensive care were prospectively enrolled according to the time of admission: group A (up to 8 days) (n = 18); group B (from 9 to 21 days) (n = 19), and group C ( > 21 days) (n = 24). T-TAS measurements were performed at enrolment and after 7 days. Median OST was similar among groups. AUC was lower in group A compared to B (p = 0.001) and C (p = 0.033). OT was longer in group A compared to B (p = 0.001) and C (p = 0.028). Platelet count (PC) was higher in group B compared to A (p = 0.024). The linear regression showed that OT and AUC were independent from PC in group A (OT: 0.149 [95% confidence interval [CI]: –0.326 to 0.624], p = 0.513 and AUC: 0.005 [95% CI: –0.008 to 0.017], p = 0,447). In contrast, in group B, PC was associated with OT (–0.019 [–0.028 to 0.008], p = 0.023) and AUC (0.749 [0.358–1.139], p = 0,015), similarly to group C. Conversely, patients with different illness severity had similar T-TAS parameters. Conclusion COVID-19 patients display an impaired platelet thrombus formation in the early phase of the disease compared to later stages and controls, independently from illness severity.

Preterm newborns are considered at risk of acquired coagulopathy and are often prophylactically infused with fresh frozen plasma (FFP) even in the absence of bleeding. To assess the coagulation asset of preterm neonates and the biological plausibility of such infusions, we investigated at birth 87 very low birth weight (≤1500 g) preterm (gestational age35 weeks) newborns and 64 full-term newborns. Preterm neonates were also investigated at different time-points up to 30 days after birth. Plasma from preterm and full-term neonates were subjected to the measurement of prothrombin and activated partial thromboplastin time (PT, APTT), pro- and anticoagulant factors as well as to thrombin-generation procedures both with and without thrombomodulin. PT and APTT of preterm newborns were longer than those of full-term neonates [PT: 15.9 s (11.7-51.2)-vs-13.8 (11.0-25.4), p 0.001. APTT: 59.0 (37.8-97.5)-vs- 47.3 (28.1-71.9), p 0.001] and tended to shortening after 30 days from birth. Thrombin-generation defined as endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) was increased in preterm as compared to full-term neonates at birth [1322 nM·min (474-2384)-vs-1006 (697-1612), p 0.001] and did not change appreciably over time up to 30 days from birth. In conclusion, plasma from preterm neonates displays a procoagulant imbalance at birth as shown by increasing ETP, despite the prolongation of PT and APTT. The results define preterm newborns as having hyper- rather than hypo-coagulability and argue against the infusion of FFP when given prophylactically and/or based solely on prolongation of PT or APTT.

Objective Patients with Cushing’s syndrome (CS) are at high risk of venous thromboembolism related to a hypercoagulability due to procoagulant imbalance. However, whether these alterations are reversible after disease remission is still unclear. The endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) measured with and without the addition of thrombomodulin provides a global representation of coagulation and previous data confirmed hypercoagulable profile in patients with active hypercortisolism. Aim of this study was to assess the short- and long-term modification of ETP in patients with CS after disease remission. Design and methods Nineteen patients with CS for whom surgical remission was achieved, were prospectively evaluated for clinical characteristics, cortisol secretion profile and ETP at different time points: (i) before surgical intervention; (ii) after 6 months and (iii) 5 years from the time of persistent remission. Nineteen healthy subjects matched for age and gender were also evaluated as control group. Results Before surgery, patients showed higher ETP-ratio (with/without thrombomodulin) than controls (0.62 ± 0.09-vs-0.56 ± 0.09, p = 0.034). No significant correlation between ETP-ratio and cortisol secretion was found. 6 months after remission, ETP-ratio was still significantly increased compared to controls (0.64 ± 0.09-vs-0.56 ± 0.09, p = 0.01), but was similar to baseline (0.64 ± 0.09-vs-0.62 ± 0.09, p = 0.87). At 5 years, ETP-ratio showed a significant decrease (0.55 ± 0.14-vs-0.62 ± 0.09, p = 0.02) and was comparable to controls (0.55 ± 0.14-vs-0.56 ± 0.09, p = 0.7). Conclusions Plasma hypercoagulability detected in patients with active hypercortisolism persists at short-term evaluation and seems to be completely reversible after long-term remission of disease. These data, as part of a whole evaluation of thrombotic risk, can contribute to make appropriate therapeutic choice in these patients.

Background Recent reports of thrombotic events after SARS-Cov-2 vaccination raised concern. However, modifications of the most common coagulation parameters after vaccination are unknown. Aims We measured parameters of coagulation including (i) basic coagulation tests, (ii) procedures aimed to assess the ex-vivo potential capacity to generate thrombin and (iii) in vivo thrombin activity. We also assessed anti-platelet factor 4 (aPF4) with two methods. Design Laboratory measurements were performed for a cohort of subjects (n = 30) before (baseline) and after (7 and 21days after first dose, and 14days after second dose) SARS-Cov-2 vaccination. Results All subjects received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, and none developed symptomatic thrombotic events during the study period. None of the parameters showed clinically relevant variations at different time-points before and after vaccination. Only platelet count showed a slight increase, and F1.2 and the thrombin generation parameters ETP and ETP-TM ratio, showed a small decline, at the last time-point after vaccination when compared to baseline. aPF4 was negative in all the subjects, except two, who were positive (one with the chemiluminescent and the other with the ELISA assay). Conclusions The study shows no modifications of the coagulation parameters nor the presence of biochemical signs of coagulation activation following the administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Obesity is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The latter being dependent (at least in part) on plasma procoagulant imbalance (i.e., hypercoagulability). Information on hypercoagulability associated with obesity is scanty and mainly based on global traditional coagulation tests or on the measurement of individual components of coagulation (i.e., pro- and anticoagulants). Plasma from 33 obese subjects was investigated soon before endoscopic balloon placement and after removal (6 months later) by thrombin-generation procedures that are thought to represent much better than any other in vitro test the coagulation process occurring in vivo. We found that obese subjects possess a state of hypercoagulability as demonstrated by the modification of the main parameters of thrombin-generation. In particular, the median value (min–max) of the endogenous thrombin potential (ETP) of obese subjects at baseline was higher than that of controls [1968 (1335–2533) vs. 1710 (1010–2119), p

Objectives Patients hospitalized because of community-acquired-pneumonia (CAP) are at risk of cardiovascular diseases. Although plasma procoagulant imbalance play a role, mechanisms are not completely understood. We aimed to investigate whether there is a measurable state of procoagulant imbalance following inflammation determined by CAP. Methods We analyzed blood from 51 CAP patients at admission and 51 healthy subjects (HS) for (i) pro and anticoagulants, (ii) thrombin generation (TG) with or without thrombomodulin (TM), which is the physiologic activator of the protein C anticoagulant pathway and(iii) by assessing the ratio between von Willebrand-factor (VWF) and its protease ADAMTS13. Thirty patients were re-analyzed one month after discharge when CAP was resolved. Results Median levels of TG parameters, including the endogenous thrombin potential (ETP), the ETP-TM-ratio (with/without TM), peak-thrombin and velocity index were higher in patients at baseline than HS. In particular, the median (IQR) ETP-TM-ratio in patients vs. HS was 0.88 (0.83–0.91) vs. 0.63 (0.48–0.71), p Conclusions Patients with CAP possess a state of pro-coagulant imbalance, which remains substantially high, even when the infection is resolved. The findings suggest CAP patients as candidates for antithrombotic prophylaxis even after the resolution of infection. Clinical trials are warranted to assess the benefit/risk ratio of prophylaxis extension.

Objectives Emicizumab, a monoclonal antibody mimicking the function of factor (F) VIII in the activation of FX by FIXa, is widely used for prophylaxis in hemophilia patients with or without inhibitors to FVIII. Although it is administered at fixed dose, its measurement could be occasionally required. In principle, the emicizumab procoagulant effect could be assessed by the one-stage assay (OSA) currently used to measure FVIII. However, the OSA for FVIII presents with limitations. Furthermore, owing to its potent FVIII-like activity, emicizumab interferes with the measurement of the inhibitor to FVIII, which is often needed in patients on emicizumab. Methods We prepared test samples by spiking a FVIII-deficient plasma with graded amounts of emicizumab. We modified the OSA for FVIII and tested plasma samples for emicizumab concentrations. Furthermore the chromogenic assay (CA) for FVIII with bovine reagents was used to assess for the FVIII inhibitor in patients on emicizumab. Results Slight modification of the OSA for FVIII (i.e., higher test plasma dilution and longer coagulometer acquisition time) made the regular OSA as a reliable laboratory tool to measure emicizumab concentration as shown by the identity of the regression (observed vs. expected) lines. Furthermore, the inhibitors to FVIII in patients on emicizumab, which were negative when measured by the regular Bethesda assay, were reliably measured by the CA assay employing bovine reagents. Conclusions The methods currently used to measure FVIII can be easily modified to make the general clinical laboratory able to assist clinicians when dealing with patients on emicizumab.

Emicizumab is a bi-specific humanized monoclonal antibody mimicking the factor (F) VIII cofactor activity in mediating the activation of FX by FIXa. Recent observations showed that emicizumab when added to pooled normal plasma (PNP), hemophilic plasma or PNP added with unfractionated heparin is able to interfere with coagulation assays. To further explore the mechanisms of assay interference we investigated the effect of emicizumab on global coagulation assays for the PNP added with two direct oral anticoagulants, apixaban or argatroban. Aliquots of PNP were added with purified apixaban or argatroban at a concentration of 500 ng/mL and emicizumab at concentrations ranging from 0 to 100 µg/mL. Plasma samples were then tested for the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and for thrombin generation (the latter for the apixaban plasma only). Emicizumab at a 25–50 µg/mL shortened the APTT of the PNP with or without apixaban or argatroban. The extent of correction was greater for the apixaban or argatroban plasma and amounted to 35% or 42%, respectively. The parameters of thrombin generation (lag-time and time-to-peak) for the PNP supplemented with apixaban were shortened by 30% or 25%, respectively and the endogenous thrombin potential and the peak-thrombin were marginally affected. Emicizumab attenuates in vitro the anticoagulant activity of the PNP induced by apixaban or argatroban as documented by the correction of prolonged APTT and velocity of thrombin generation (i.e., lag-time and time-to-peak). Whether the above effects have any relevance in vivo is unknown.

Introduction Patients with haemophilia A (HA) have impaired thrombin generation (TG) capacity and TG assay (TGA) values are linearly related to plasma factor VIII (FVIII) levels. Aim This study carried out in patients with unmeasurable FVIII (

Background and aims Despite the potential benefits of thromboelastography (TEG) for bedside hemostatic assessment in critical care settings, its accuracy remains to be determined, especially in critically ill neonates. We determined the intra-assay reproducibility of TEG parameters: Reaction time (R), clot kinetics (K) and Maximum Amplitude (MA) in a cohort of very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. Study design Observational study. Subjects One hundred VLBW newborns. Outcome measures We performed TEG duplicate measurements for blood samples from VLBW newborns. To assess for correlation, we calculated the coefficients of correlation by plotting the values of the first vs the second measurement. Paired samples were compared with t-test and the coefficient of variation (CV) on paired results was also calculated as a measure of variability. To evaluate the agreement between duplicates, Bland-Altman (BA) analysis was performed. Results We evaluated 228 TEG pairs. Both the coefficient of correlation and the BA analysis showed an acceptable level of agreement between duplicates. TEG variability (CV, mean ± SD) was highest for K (10.4%, ±12.9), lowest for MA (3.6%, ±8.0) and moderate for R (7.9%, ±9.0). The results from ANOVA one-way analysis describe different variability trends: K-CV increased at higher values, while MA-CV and R-CV increased at lower values. Conclusions In VLBW newborns, the agreement between TEG duplicate measurements for R and MA parameters is adequate for clinical purposes. TEG is a promising tool to quickly assess hemostasis ensuring a significant blood sparing in critically ill neonates.

High platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) are associated with an increased risk of arterial thrombosis, but their role in venous thromboembolism (VTE) has not been fully investigated. A case–control study, of 486 patients with VTE, 100 with cerebral vein thrombosis (CVT), and 299 healthy individuals, was carried out to investigate whether high PLR or NLR values are associated with an increased risk of VTE. Patients with high PLR or NLR did not have an increased risk of VTE (odds ratio [OR] 0.89, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.46-1.76; OR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.34-1.39, respectively) or CVT (OR: 1.65, 95% CI: 0.68-4.00; OR: 0.39, 95% CI: 0.09-1.72, respectively). Subgroups analysis showed that high PLR values were associated with the risk of provoked CVT (OR: 2.65, 95% CI: 1.02-6.92), and there was an interaction with thrombophilia abnormalities (OR: 7.67, 95% CI: 1.67-35.27) in patients with CVT. In conclusion, high PLR and NLR values are not associated with an overall increased risk of VTE or CVT. High PLR values increase the risk of provoked CVT and interact with thrombophilia abnormalities in patients with CVT.

Introduction In the presence of high-titre inhibitors, haemostatic bypassing agents are used to control bleeding and perform surgery. In this setting, no specific laboratory test is yet available to guide drug choice, monitor treatment efficacy and predict the risk of bleeding. Aim The aims of this study, carried out in patients candidate to orthopaedic surgery, were to assess the dose-dependent increase in thrombin generation (TG) after infusion of bypassing agents and to evaluate whether or not a correlation existed between the haemostatic efficacy of bypassing therapies and perioperative TG values. Methods and Results TG was measured in 16 inhibitor patients, 10 of whom underwent 11 major orthopaedic procedures. In the non-bleeding state, TG significantly improved 30 min after whichever dose (P < 0.01), with no dose–response relationship when values obtained after different rFVIIa doses were compared. TG significantly improved 30 min after the preoperative bolus (P < 0.05), while during the postoperative period TG values measured before and after dosing did not differ. Moreover, postoperative TG values were similar or even more impaired (P ≤ 0.05) than those measured before preoperative dosing. No difference was found by comparing procedures with and without bleeding complications and yet no bleeding occurred in spite of persistently low TG values in one-third of procedures. Conclusion This study fails to support a definite role for the TG assay as a reliable laboratory tool to monitor the haemostatic efficacy of bypassing therapies and as a predictor of the risk of bleeding in inhibitor patients using these agents during orthopaedic surgery.

Introduction Some observations suggest that severe hemophilia B (HB) may exhibit a milder bleeding tendency than severe hemophilia A (HA), however possible differences in the coagulation profile of severe HB and HA that may account for such phenotypic variability have not been extensively investigated. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and laboratory phenotype of patients with severe HB (cases) with those with severe HA (controls) in order to ascertain potential determinants for a milder bleeding phenotype. Methods: patients with severe HB and HA (FIX and FVIII Disclosures: Fasulo: Pfizer: Unrestricted Research Grant Other. Santagostino:Pfizer: Unrestricted Research Grant Other.

Background Although surgery is considered the major haemostatic challenge in patients with hemophilia, laboratory monitoring is limited to the measurement of factor VIII (FVIII) levels in response to concentrate infusions and the global effect of replacement therapy on the activation and maintenance of coagulation activation has never been investigated. Moreover, in hemophilia complicated by inhibitors no routine coagulation monitoring is available to assess haemostasis during surgery in patients receiving by-passing agents (BPA; namely, recombinant activated FVII, rFVIIa and activated prothrombin complex concentrate, aPCC). Thrombin generation assay (TGA) may be used to monitor haemostatic treatment both in inhibitor and non-inhibitor patients with hemophilia. The aims of this study were to investigate if the use of TGA in the surgical setting is able to provide information on global coagulation activation during FVIII replacement therapy and if it is related to the haemostatic and clinical response after BPA therapy in patients with inhibitors. Methods Thrombin generation was assessed in vivo in platelet-rich (PRP) and platelet-poor (PPP) plasma with the addition of corn trypsin inhibitor (CTI) in 17 patients with severe hemophilia A (9 with high-responding inhibitors) aged 5-59 years (median: 39) undergoing orthopaedic surgery at a single center. Four main parameters of the thrombin generation curve were evaluated: lagtime, endogenous thrombin potential (ETP), peak and time-to-peak. TGA was assessed once daily prior and 30 minutes after concentrate administration (FVIII or BPA) starting from the first pre-operative infusion and for at least the 4 consecutive post-operative days. Peri- and post-operative FVIII and BPA dosing and regimens were established according to our practice irrespective of TGA results. In non-inhibitor patients, FVIII levels were measured on the same blood samples drawn for TGA. Results In the group of 8 non-inhibitor patients TGA values increased after the first FVIII concentrate infusion (i.e. pre-operative bolus), however during the post-operative period, when FVIII trough levels were maintained above 50 IU/dL in all patients, TGA was scarcely sensitive to the significant variation observed in FVIII levels prior (median: 74 IU/dL) and after (median: 155 IU/dL; p Conclusions Our results indicate that TGA is not a suitable tool to monitor hemophilia treatment in the surgical setting. In fact, in non-inhibitor patients TGA was moderately sensitive to the haemostatic response to FVIII replacement therapy as compared to FVIII levels monitoring. On the other hand, in inhibitor patients TGA was not able to predict either the haemostatic response to different BPA and/or dosing regimens nor the risk of bleeding complications. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.