John L.
Francis, PhD
Director, Clinical and Research Laboratories
Florida Hospital Center for Hemostasis and
Thrombosis
Orlando, Florida
Bleeding Time
Among hemostatic testing, Bleeding Time (BT) has
the longest history of use. The BT test has been
used in an attempt to identify both quantitative
and qualitative disorders of primary hemostasis
since 1910.1 Unfortunately,
BT is considered to be labor-intensive, provides
subjective results and may be considered to be traumatic
to the patient.1,2 In
addition, serious questions remain concerning the
utility of bleeding time and research suggests that
it should not be used to screen asymptomatic patients
with no family or personal history of bleeding disorders.3
The test is conducted using several different methods,
each involves making an incision and measuring the
time it takes for bleeding to stop. The most reproducable
method uses an incision of standard length and depth
combined with stasis produced by a pressure cuff.4
For information on other tests for platelet dysfunction,
click on the following:
