The direct antiglobulin test in a hospital setting

To evaluate the current use of the DAT in our hospital, we reviewed the charts of all patients who had a DAT performed in our laboratory. The collected data included DAT results and a previously completed laboratory evaluation of suspected hemolytic anemia. Four hundred sixty-three DATs were performed in our laboratory from April 1999 to October 2001.The DAT was negative in 434 (93.7%) cases and positive in 29 (6.3%) cases. A complete laboratory evaluation of suspected hemolytic anemia was seen in 179 (38.7%) cases. The incidence of a positive DAT was higher in the group of patients with > 2 signs of hemolysis (4/34 cases; 11.8%) than in the group of patients with ≤ 2 signs of hemolysis (5/145 cases;3.4%) (RR = 0.029;95% CI:0.08–1.03;p = 0.06). When a patient with anemia is being investigated, a complete laboratory evaluation for suspected hemolytic anemia should be done before performing a DAT. Immunohematology 2003:19:16–18.