The calibrated automated thrombogram (CAT or CT) is a
thrombin generation assay (TGA) and
global coagulation assay (GCA) which can be used as a
coagulation test to assess
thrombotic
Thrombosis (from Ancient Greek "clotting") is the formation of a Thrombus, blood clot inside a blood vessel, obstructing the flow of blood through the circulatory system. When a blood vessel (a vein or an artery) is injured, the body uses plate ...
risk.
It is the most widely used TGA.
The CAT is a
semi-automated test performed in a
96-well plate and requires specialized
technologists to be performed.
As a result, it has seen low implementation in routine laboratories and has been more limited to research settings.
Lack of
standardization
Standardization or standardisation is the process of implementing and developing technical standards based on the consensus of different parties that include firms, users, interest groups, standards organizations and governments. Standardization ...
with the CAT has also led to difficulties in study-to-study comparisons in research.
However, efforts have recently been made towards standardization of the assay.
An example of a specific commercial CAT is the Thrombinoscope by Thrombinoscope BV (now owned by Diagnostica Stago).
The CAT can be used to measure
thrombogram parameters such as the
endogenous thrombin potential (ETP)
and to assess
activated protein C resistance (APCR).
The CAT ETP-based
APC resistance test is especially sensitive to
estrogen
Estrogen or oestrogen is a category of sex hormone responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics. There are three major endogenous estrogens that have estrogenic hormonal a ...
-induced
procoagulation, such as with
combined oral contraceptive
The combined oral contraceptive pill (COCP), often referred to as the birth control pill or colloquially as "the pill", is a type of birth control that is designed to be taken orally by women. The pill contains two important hormones: progest ...
s.
In 2018, a commercial fully-automated TGA system and alternative to the CAT called the
ST Genesia debuted.
It has been said that this system should allow for more widespread adoption of TGAs in clinical laboratories.
The ST Genesia system also shows improved
reproducibility
Reproducibility, also known as replicability and repeatability, is a major principle underpinning the scientific method. For the findings of a study to be reproducible means that results obtained by an experiment or an observational study or in a ...
compared to the CAT.
References
Blood tests
Coagulation system
Medical signs
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