Quality Assurance in Platelet Function Testing.
Review published in Clinics in laboratory medicine (2026)
Abstract
Platelets play a crucial role in primary hemostasis. Congenital and acquired platelet disorders may be associated with bleeding. High-quality laboratory assessment of platelets is crucial for patient care. Multiple methods have been developed to assess platelet function. While several guidelines have been published related to platelet function testing, surveys demonstrate wide variation in practices. Preanalytical variables such as patient medication use, collection, transport, and storage impact testing results. Test interpretation requires appropriate reference intervals and an understanding of the impact of thrombocytopenia on results. Internal and external quality assessments aid laboratories in monitoring the performance of platelet function assays.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Summary
Platelets play a crucial role in primary hemostasis. Congenital and acquired platelet disorders may be associated with bleeding. High-quality laboratory assessment of platelets is crucial for patient care. Multiple methods have been developed to assess platelet function. While several guidelines have been published related to platelet function testing, surveys demonstrate wide variation in practices.
Why This Matters for Hirudotherapy
This review surveys quality assurance in laboratory platelet function testing, noting that platelets are central to primary hemostasis, that congenital and acquired platelet disorders may cause bleeding, that high-quality platelet assessment is crucial for patient care, and that despite published guidelines, surveys show wide variation in practice. It emphasizes that preanalytical variables (patient medication use, collection, transport, storage), appropriate reference intervals, the impact of thrombocytopenia, and internal/external quality assessment all critically affect result interpretation. For hirudotherapy this is contextual support for the clinical-evidence and laboratory-safety side of the field: assessing platelet function is part of evaluating bleeding risk around leech application, and leech secretome components (e.g., platelet-aggregation inhibitors such as calin and saratin, described elsewhere) target the very platelet function these assays measure. Caveat: this is a methodological laboratory review about test quality, not a study of hirudotherapy, leeches, or any therapeutic effect, so it bears only on how platelet-related safety testing should be performed and interpreted.
Citation
Quality Assurance in Platelet Function Testing.
Smock et al. · Clinics in laboratory medicine, 2026
Added to ASH library: May 28, 2026 · Site last updated: June 18, 2026