Antithrombin III in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation in Premature Infants.
- Author:
Su Jin CHO
1
;
Hye Ryung CHOI
;
Young Mi HONG
;
Kyung Hee KIM
;
Keun LEE
;
Eun Ae PARK
Author Information
1. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Korea. nea8639@ewha.ac.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
Antithrombin III;
Premature infants;
Disseminated intravascular coagulation(DIC)
- MeSH:
Antithrombin III*;
Blood Cell Count;
Dacarbazine;
Diagnosis*;
Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation*;
Humans;
Infant, Newborn;
Infant, Premature*;
Retrospective Studies
- From:Korean Journal of Pediatrics
2004;47(7):740-745
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
PURPOSE: We evaluated the diagnostic implications and therapeutic efficacy of antithrombin III(AT III) in the disseminated intravascular coagulation(DIC) of premature infants. METHODS: Ninety-two premature infants diagnosed with DIC and treated with AT III from March, 2000 to May, 2003 were retrospectively reviewed. Clinical manifestations, complete blood counts, coagulation tests, and AT III levels were compared between the two groups:definite DIC if clinical signs of DIC and AT III <70% with more than two abnormal laboratory parameters were present, and suspected DIC if not more than two abnormal laboratory parameters were present. RESULTS: AT III was given for an average of 3.2 days and no side effects related to the treatment were reported. The AT III levels increased significantly more than four fold with treatment in both groups. The clinical signs and laboratory values improved significantly after treatment. CONCLUSION: AT III level is a sensitive parameter in the diagnosis of DIC in premature infants, and it is useful as a treatment modality since it improves the clinical symptoms and the laboratory parameters without significant side effects.
