FREE INR Testing

[Freddie]

I may be posting this a little too soon, but I need to ask; is there any benefit testing ones INR if they are NOT on warfarin/coumadin? Unless of course your testing your own machine, but personally I think not (am I wrong?)

The reason I ask is because our local Costco store is having a FREE INR finger pick test and who ever wants it can get it done. YES a finger prick…..unbelievable in my part of the country.

I don’t know all the details, but I’m planning on going on Saturday and would really appreciate some good questions I can ask.

If necessary, my first question would be, ‘ why are you testing people who aren’t on anticoagulation?’ (plus wasting $6.50 a strip) [to bad I can’t pronounce the word lol]

2) it’s not a blood thinner – my blood is the same thickness as yours, I don’t have as much clotting agent as you, which would be vit. K.

I’m thinking that these people who are doing this free testing might be of “simple mind”, so if you can add some good/no brainer questions that would be great. Then again they might be informed, therefore I would get the right answer.

Thanks for your time everyone.

 

[Jeff Edmonton]

You would think that they might be concerned about blood contamination from the lancing tool and the sensing area of the meter. They would not even test me at London Drugs in Red Deer with there Demo model because of the possiblity of minute blood particles being absorbed into the sensing area of the meter.
I wanted to compare results because I was at the Lab that day.

Manatoba is sorta like a third world country so I guess it's exceptable there...hehehe Jk

 

[Freddie]

Oh Jeff LOL it's spelled Manitoba and I'm in Saskatoon.

Good point about the lancing device, I'll make sure they change it. Another good point is the area of the testing. Although I don't know exactly were it's going to be held in Costco but I'm sure there will still be dust flying around the warehouse.

 

[Bina]

There are lots of people taking Coumadin for A'Fib also, so I'm thinking that Roche is having a free test day
to promote their Coaguchek home testers. Let me know please.

 

[Greg a]

They may have recognised that they have a high number of customers in the pharmacy that already buy the meds and as to the test the lance will/should be changed with each test as well as the surface on the meter and lancing tool be swabbed ....the test area is the strip and that has to be chenged of course at pennies to them as they dont pay $6.50 each and they want to sell ONE meter and over a lifetime THOUSANDS of the strips that you pay $6.50 for THAT IS WHERE THEY MAKE $s in the strips

 

[Freddie]

What would you like to know Bina?

 

[ALCapshaw2]

The "incisors" provided for INR testing are One Use Only types of devices and should be discarded appropriately along with other Bio-Hazard materials.

 

[Eva]

Hi Freddie,

There are many people who have blood diseases that prevent coagulation, but they are not aware of it! Their conditions can be misdiagnosed or unnoticed, mainly when their bleeding is due to minor cuts only.

One of two diseas I know of is the von Willebrand disease (vWd) :

"Hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. have von Willebrand disease. Many of these people, both men and women, are unaware and have never been diagnosed. ........................"​

For the full article, visit: http://www.ahfinfo.com/ahfinfo/womenandvwd.html

The other disease is Hemophelia.

"There are several types of hemophilia. All types can cause prolonged bleeding. .......Small cuts usually aren't much of a problem. .....Hemophilia is a lifelong disease. ..."​

The full article is here: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hemophilia/DS00218

Costco could be doing this as (1) a service to their customers who are on anticoagulants only, or (2) as an eye opener to those who are unaware of their inherited disease, and thus (3) could also be a good way to introduce their home-testing machine.

I will look forward to your update. :smile2:

 

[Bill B]

Although they may be testing people not on warfarin, the INR is not useful for picking up Hemophilia or Von Willebrand disease. That requires other testing (partial thromboplastin time, bleeding time). It will pick up Factor V or X deficiency, but they are very rare - they'd have to test around half a million people to detect one case. Factor VII and II deficiency are even rarer.

 

[RobThatsMe]

Looking at this from a positive side, not many people are on a frequent INR test schedule, especially the elderly. Also, some folks tend to forget if they already took their dose or not... and in these instances they could over dose.

So a free test is a good thing. They may find a few folks that are way too high in range, and perhaps save a life.

I really don't agree with once a month testing for someone taking Coumadin.

The above scenario is real. It happened to my mother, and she died of a stroke.

Rob

 

[lance]

Hi Freddie
I think it's a great idea to promote home monitors by doing tests for free. Easy and fast anyone can do it. I'm not a fan of once a month testing either and I'm aware many do and are.
There are many types of one-use only lancing devices. One stick and into the trash it goes.
It would be just about impossible to contaminate my XS with blood from a previous test. I've taken my used strips apart and the blood goes from the target area into a sealed channel.
Why would patients not on warfarin be interested?
Because of gastro problems (previously mentioned on another thread) I'm no longer on warfari/coumadin and luckily for me can still use my XS.
Let us know how you fare.

 

[Protimenow]

I've long been an advocate of testing for people taking warfarin, regardless of the ability to pay.
As noted, the lancing devices are one use - normal procedure is to prepare the finger with an alcohol swab, let it dry, then to incise. There wouldn't be any contamination from the finger stick.
Once the incision is made, with the CoaguChek XS, a drop of blood is touched to the side of the strip, and drawn into the strip through capillary action. The risk of contamination from someone else's blood is minimal or practically nonexistent. (Some clinics will clean the meters, and apparently, some blood may eventually wind up under the channel where the strips are inserted, but I'm not clear on HOW ANY blood gets there, because the strip is basically a sealed unit except for the area where the blood is collected). To get ANY of another person's blood from touching a drop of your own blood to the side of the strip is mind boggling -- you'll probably have a greater chance of getting the flu by walking INTO the Costco store and someone in the other side of the store coughing than you would getting something from a test properly performed with a CoaguChek XS.

 

[Eva]

Although they may be testing people not on warfarin, the INR is not useful for picking up Hemophilia or Von Willebrand disease. That requires other testing (partial thromboplastin time, bleeding time). It will pick up Factor V or X deficiency, but they are very rare - they'd have to test around half a million people to detect one case. Factor VII and II deficiency are even rarer.

Bill, I definitely agree that the missing Factors you mentioned are the basis to determine the presense of this blood disorder.

Yet, I am always curious whether the INR of those with Hemophelia or with Von Willebrand would be out of range in any way or can indicate anything!!:confused2:

A friend of ours has the VWb and I always forgot to test his blood when he visited us!!

:smile2:

 

[Freddie]

Canceled!

Canceled!

Ironically this "Free INR Test" day was canceled by the nurse due to a death in the family.

Apparently rescheduled for May 14th.

 

[Freddie]

I forgot to mention that I was also told by the pharmacist that they didn't believe Costco would be handling the monitor or the supplies.

 

[Protimenow]

Costco has certainly been unable or unwilling to do anything about meters or supplies whenever I adked them.

 

[normofthenorth]

Since I stopped taking Warfarin and testing my INR (3 months after my Mitral-reinforcement "Simplici-T" ring), I've been curious about how close to 1.0 my "normal" INR is. If testing were free and convenient, I might scratch that curiosity itch.

 

[lance]

Hi Norm
A requisition from your doctor is required for a lab to test INR and costs are covered by OHIP.
Should you require blood tests for other reasons may one for INR could be included.

 

[normofthenorth]

Lance, I'm guessing that my last prescription for lab INR tests might still be in force. If so, and the lab does it, I'm sure my Doctor would be surprised to get the results, but I bet she'd tell me what they are (though maybe in a scolding tone!).

 

[Greg a]

For blood work "Standing Orders" are usualy good for six months

Lance, I'm guessing that my last prescription for lab INR tests might still be in force. If so, and the lab does it, I'm sure my Doctor would be surprised to get the results, but I bet she'd tell me what they are (though maybe in a scolding tone!).