Abstract
In critically ill patients, arterial or venous blood is available for sampling and measurement of coagulation parameters. The aim of this study was to examine whether in these patients the values of coagulation parameters differ with respect to the source of the blood samples.
In patients with severe sepsis, we compared the values of coagulation, thromboelastography and selected hematological parameters between the arterial and venous blood. In most of the investigated parameters (INR, APTT, fibrinogen, erythrocyte, leukocyte and platelet count, hemoglobin level and thromboelastography parameters), we did not find differences (P>0.1).
However, we found lower antithrombin activity and higher D-dimer concentration in venous blood compared to arterial blood (P<0.05). It could be associated with increased consumption of antithrombin and generation of D-dimer as a consequence of microthrombi formation in the capillaries.
In this case, arterial and venous blood cannot be treated as equivalent.