Venous thromboembolism is a common medical condition in both out-patients a
nd inpatients. Despite the development of non-invasive tests, the diagnosis
of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism remains a clinical challeng
e. In an effort to improve diagnostic accuracy and to reduce the necessity
of serial testing, laboratory markers of thrombin generation and fibrinolys
is have been investigated as first-line screening tests. Although the major
ity of markers are elevated in acute thrombosis, D-dimer, a specific deriva
tive of cross-linked fibrin, appears to have the most potential clinical ut
ility. Accuracy studies and preliminary management trials suggest that rapi
d D-dimer enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and the whole blood agglutinat
ion assay, SimpliRED D-dimer (Agen Biomedical, Brisbane, Australia), have,
strong potential as exclusionary tests in patients with suspected venous th
rombosis.