Biological exploration of hemostasis in children aged 0 to 17 years

Hemostasis encompasses all the mechanisms involved in stopping bleeding. When a blood vessel is breached the body's task is to repair it. Certain parameters such as prothrombin time International Normalized Ratio and activated partial thromboplastin time play a role in both the diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring of this pathology. The aim of this study was to investigate haemostasis in children aged 0 to 17 years. The parameters studied were prothrombin rate (PT) INR and activated partial thromboplastin time or kaolin (aPTT/TCK). 100 patients were included 57% of them male and 43% female. The majority of these patients came from Commune 6 (61%) 16% from Commune 5 10% from the outskirts of Bamako (i.e. patients outside the communes of Bamako) 8% from Commune 1 and 5% from Commune 4. With regard to the reasons for prescribing haemostasis it emerged that this parameter was prescribed in patients mainly for preoperative assessment (90% of cases). This analysis was also suggested in cases of suspected infection (4%).