Hemosense INRatio2 for PT/INR testing at home

Hemosense INRatio2 monitor provides a very useful tool in the measurement of prothrombin time (PT)  which is a test of the blood that looks at how long it takes for the blood to clot. This test is also called an INR test (international normalized ratio).

The measurement for prothrombin time is usually done by using bloodstream plasma. Blood from the bloodstream is given right into a test tube that contains liquid citrate, which functions like a anticoagulant that binds to the calcium inside the sampled container. The blood is stirred up, whereby a centrifuge divides up the blood cells from the plasma.

A biomedical research scientist can then examine the plasma with an automated instrument that takes a plasma sample. An amount of calcium is added in which allows the bloodstream to form clots again. To have an accurate measurement the proportion of blood needed to citrate, it must be fixed since many labs won't perform the assay when the tube is under-filled and consists of a comparatively high concentrate of citrate. When the tube is under-filled or over-filled within the bloodstream, the standard dilution of just one part anticoagulant to nine parts whole bloodstream is not anymore valid.