Performance Characteristics of Reference Thromboplastins

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Abstract
Data are presented to show that the use of the five “reference thromboplastins” distributed by the Medical Research Council, Division of Biologic Standards, as standards cannot be supported when the performance of these reference thromboplastins is evaluated critically. In fact, the performance of a commercially available thromboplastin is generally superior. It is not possible to support the concept that these reference thromboplastins should be used for international standardization of the prothrombin time test, nor is it possible to support the adoption of clotting ratios, as these are shown to be subject to significant variation owing to the high coefficients of variation for the reference thromboplastins. The use of standard reference plasmas for standardization has been well documented and is reviewed. It is recommended that commercially available control plasmas (Verify Normal, Verify I, and Verify II) be used for the daily quality control of the prothrombin time test.

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