COMPARISON OF IMMUNOFILTRATION ASSAY OF PLASMA D-DIMER WITH DIAGNOSTIC-IMAGING IN DEEP-VEIN THROMBOSIS

This prospective study was designed to assess the diagnostic sensitivi ty, specificity and negative predictive value of the NycoCard D-dimer plasma immunofiltration assay in patients with suspected deep vein thr ombosis (DVT) confirmed by ultrasonography/venography. 84 medical pati ents were recruited: 43 patients (51%) had proven venous thrombosis, 3 3 by venography and 10 by ultrasonography. The sensitivity of NycoCard D-dimer in patients with DVT was 95.3%, the specificity was 22.0% and the negative predictive value was 81.8%. An algorithm including the N ycoCard D-dimer test for the acute management of DVT is proposed. This would enable low-risk patients to be discharged early from hospital, without imaging or anticoagulant therapy.