What does D dimer blood test results mean?
D-dimer Blood Test Results Explained. The D-dimer blood test is ordered to determine if there is the presence of an inappropriate blood clot somewhere in the body. The two most common reasons for this test to be ordered is because a pulmonary embolism is suspected or there are signs and symptoms of a deep vein thrombosis.
How is the D-dimer test used to diagnose DVT?
The D-dimer test can be used both ways, based on what your doctor is looking for. To rule out DVT and other conditions: The D-dimer test is most useful when your doctor thinks something else is causing your symptoms and wants to quickly rule out these causes: In this case, the test is only helpful if you’re not too likely to have blood clots.
What is D-dimer in venous thromboembolism (VTE)?
Background: D-dimer is routinely measured as part of the clinical diagnosis algorithms for venous thromboembolism (VTE). In these algorithms, low D- dimer cut-off values are used to generate a dichotomous test result that is sensitive, but very non-specific for VTE.
How many extremely elevated D-dimer test results are there?
Methods: Retrospective cohort study of patients > 18 years with an extremely elevated (> 5000 μg/l; > 10x cut-off to exclude VTE) D-dimer test result. Electronic medical records were reviewed for diagnoses. Results: A total of 759 extremely elevated D-dimer results were identified.
What is D-dimer and how is It measured?
One of the final fibrin degradation products produced is D-Dimer, which can be measured in a blood sample when present. Normally, with a little time, D-dimer goes away. But you can get high levels of D-dimer in your blood if you have a major clot like with deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
What is the significance of D-dimer testing in the diagnosis of VTE?
Conclusion: Although D-dimer testing has a reputation for being very non-specific, an extremely elevated D-dimer is uniquely associated with severe disease, mainly including VTE, sepsis and/or cancer.
What is the optimal result of a D-dimer test?
Optimal Result: 0 – 0.49 mg/L FEU. Also Known As: Fragment D-dimer // Fibrin Degradation Fragment A D-dimer test is most often used to find out whether you have a blood clotting disorder.
What is the reference range of D dimer?
Reference Range. D-dimer is the degradation product of crosslinked (by factor XIII) fibrin. It reflects ongoing activation of the hemostatic system. The reference concentration of D-dimer is less than 0.5 µg/mL fibrinogen-equivalent units (FEU)
What is the NPV of D dimer test?
Based on this score, the probability for developing DVT is categorized as low (unlikely to develop) or high (likely to develop). In the low-moderate group, the NPV of the D-dimer test is 99% among patients aged 60-80 years but drops to 21%-31% if the patient is older than 80 years.