title: A patient with a prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time and a deep intracerebral haemorrhage.
abstract: We report on a 57-year-old woman with a pontine haemorrhage and an extremely prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) of more than 240 s, suggestive of a coagulation disorder. Given the location of the haemorrhage, which is associated with a high mortality rate, recombinant factor VIIa was administered, although not all necessary laboratory analyses could be performed at that time. In our case, a deficiency of factor XII was found, which is not associated with an increased bleeding risk. In an acute setting, evaluation of a prolonged aPTT may cause diagnostic and therapeutic challenges, in particular in situations where additional laboratory investigations may not be readily available.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Chemistry, Haematology and Immunology, Medical Centre Alkmaar, Alkmaar, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Roger K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Schindhelm
authors.forename: Mariëlle J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Wondergem
authors.forename: Joke
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Admiraal
authors.forename: Gert
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nap
authors.forename: Edwin Ten
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Boekel
authors.forename: Lahcen
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hani