Blood Disorders Diagnosis

If you are at high risk for developing a blood disorder, your doctor will monitor you regularly in order to detect and treat the condition early. High-risk patients include those with a family history of a blood disorder or those with diseases such as liver disease. Symptoms of a blood disorder include frequent nosebleeds, excessive bruising and heavy bleeding when cut.

Diagnosing Blood Disorders

Your doctor will begin the diagnosis by asking you about your symptoms and your medical and family history. We will also perform a thorough physical examination.

Other diagnostic procedures include:

• Laboratory tests - We will do a complete blood count (CBC) in order to measure the number of blood cells, including platelets.
• Bleeding time - During this procedure, we make two small cuts on your lower arm. The goal is to evaluate how quickly the cuts stop bleeding. The cuts are small and feel like a scratch. Measuring how long it takes for the bleeding to stop helps us diagnose blood disorders.
• Partial thromboplastin time (PTT) and prothrombin time (PT) - For these two tests, we take a sample of your blood. A laboratory specialist evaluates how long it takes the blood to clot.
• Platelet aggregation test - This blood test specifically evaluates your platelets. It can help us diagnose a problem with the platelets and determine the underlying cause of the blood disorder.

Blood Disorder: Treatment

Once we obtain an accurate diagnosis, we will create your individualized treatment plan. We treat blood disorders using factor replacement and platelet transfusion. Learn more about blood disorders treatment.