Ristocetin Precipitation Test: A New Simple Test for Detection of Fibrin Monomer and Fibrin Degradation Products

Abstract

Watanabe, Kiyoaki, and Tullis, James L.: Ristocetin precipitation test. A new simple test for detection of fibrin monomer and fibrin degradation products. Am J Clin Pathol 70: 691–696, 1978. The ristocetin precipitation test was designed as a simplified test to detect fibrin monomers and fibrinogen/fibrin degradation products (FDP/fdp). The ristocetin precipitation test is positive in plasma samples containing either fibrin monomer (>5–10 µg/ml) or early fdp (>50–100 µg/ml). The ristocetin precipitation test is negative in plasma with fibrinogen concentrations to 1,000 mg/dl or fibrinogen degradation products (FDP) and late fdp to 400 µg/ml. The ristocetin precipitation test is positive in plasmas collected from rabbits after the infusion of thrombin (2.7 u/kg) or thrombin and streptokinase (10,000 u/kg); the test is negative in plasmas from animals treated with streptokinase or saline solution alone. The ristocetin precipitation test is negative in normal human plasmas and plasmas from patients who have primary fibrinogenolysis, but positive in plasmas from patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation. These results suggest that the ristocetin precipitation test can be a useful test for the detection of plasma fibrin monomers and early fdp.