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  • Title: Bleeding symptom assessment and hemostasis evaluation of menorrhagia.
    Author: Kouides PA.
    Journal: Curr Opin Hematol; 2008 Sep; 15(5):465-72. PubMed ID: 18695369.
    Abstract:
    PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Because menorrhagia is a very common clinical condition reported by 5-10% of women of reproductive age, and in turn, because up to half of women with a normal gynecological evaluation will have laboratory abnormalities of hemostasis, it is incumbent on the part of the hematologist to be able to carry out a logical clinical and laboratory assessment for an underlying bleeding disorder after gynecological causes are ruled out. RECENT FINDINGS: Historically, the bleeding assessment of patients with bleeding symptoms in general, has been inaccurate due to the poor specificity of these symptoms. Recently, these symptoms have been refined and incorporated into a scoring system. Studies on applying this scoring system and on the specific assessment of women with menorrhagia are ongoing. Hemostasis testing is justified in women with menorrhagia and a normal gynecological evaluation, as 11-16% of them will meet the laboratory diagnosis of von Willebrand disease. An additional proportion of patients may have a decrease in platelet aggregation or release or both. A smaller proportion may have a coagulation deficiency or a defect in fibrinolysis. SUMMARY: Given the relatively high proportion of defects noted, after an initial assessment by the bleeding score, testing up-front should include von Willebrand factor analysis, and if normal, platelet aggregation and release studies should follow.
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