LAUSR

Several recently developed transfusion guidelines recommend the use of viscoelastic testing (VET) to help guide blood component therapy for pediatric patients undergoing major surgery. 1 In contrast to traditional lab testing, VET measures each stage of coagulation including clot initiation, strength, and lysis. VET can detect specific de-fects in coagulation such as hypofibrinogenemia, hyperfibrinolysis, and platelet function. 2 Recently, Hass and Faraoni summarized the current pediatric literature and reference range results of traditional VET devices. The authors concluded that adult reference ranges for VET could be applied over the age of 1 year. 1 The two most common VET modalities used in the USA, ro-tational thromboelastometry (ROTEM® Delta, TEM International GmbH) and thromboelastography (TEG® 5000, Haemonetics Corporation), employ similar technologies, consisting of an oscil-lating pin suspended in a cup of blood. Clotting exerts increasing resistance on the pin, and the contributors to clot formation are thus determined. 2 The Quantra Hemostasis Analyzer (HemoSonics LLC) is a