Lack of correlation between heparin dose and standard clinical monitoring tests in treatment with unfractionated heparin in critically ill children

• Published in: Haematologica (Roma) Vol. 92; no. 4; pp. 554 - 557
• Main Authors: Kuhle, Stefan, Eulmesekian, Pablo, Kavanagh, Brian, Massicotte, Patricia, Vegh, Patsy, Lau, Alice, Mitchell, Lesley G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Italy 01.04.2007
• Subjects: Adolescent; Anticoagulants - administration & dosage; Anticoagulants - adverse effects; Anticoagulants - pharmacology; Anticoagulants - therapeutic use; Blood Coagulation Tests; Child; Child, Preschool; Cohort Studies; Critical Care - methods; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug Monitoring; Factor Xa Inhibitors; Female; Heart Defects, Congenital - blood; Hemorrhage - chemically induced; Heparin - administration & dosage; Heparin - adverse effects; Heparin - pharmacology; Heparin - therapeutic use; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Male; Partial Thromboplastin Time; Postoperative Complications - prevention & control; Prospective Studies; Pulmonary Embolism - drug therapy; Thrombin; Thrombophilia - drug therapy; Thrombosis - prevention & control; Venous Thrombosis - drug therapy
• ISSN: 1592-8721
• DOI: 10.3324/haematol.10696

The activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and anti-Xa activity are used for monitoring unfractionated heparin (UFH) therapy in children and may not be optimal. Determine correlations of aPTT, anti-Xa and UFH dose in children. Single centre prospective cohort study in children receiving UFH. The aPTT and anti-Xa results from routine coagulation monitoring were collected. Thirty-nine children (median age 18 days) were enrolled. There was no relationship between aPTT and UFH dose (r2=0.12) or anti-Xa and UFH dose (r2=0.03) or aPTT and anti-Xa (r2=0.22). aPTT and anti-Xa do not accurately monitor UFH therapy in children.