A patient with a prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time and a deep intracerebral haemorrhage

Roger K Schindhelm1, Mariëlle J Wondergem, Joke Admiraal

  • 1Department of Clinical Chemistry, Haematology and Immunology, Medical Centre Alkmaar, Alkmaar, The Netherlands.

Case Reports in Neurology
|September 6, 2012
PubMed

We report on a 57-year-old woman with a pontine haemorrhage and an extremely prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) of more than 240 s, suggestive of a coagulation disorder. Given the location of the haemorrhage, which is associated with a high mortality rate, recombinant factor VIIa was administered, although not all necessary laboratory analyses could be performed at that time. In our case, a deficiency of factor XII was found, which is not associated with an increased bleeding risk. In an acute setting, evaluation of a prolonged aPTT may cause diagnostic and therapeutic challenges, in particular in situations where additional laboratory investigations may not be readily available.

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