d-dimer Testing Reduces Need for Ultrasound in Diagnosis of DVT

The use of d-dimer testing to diagnose deep venous thrombosis (DVT) has been assessed previously, but none of the studies was randomized and controlled. In this randomized, controlled study, the authors used a pretest clinical scoring system to categorize patients as either likely or unlikely to have DVT. Patients were then randomized to undergo ultrasound imaging alone or d-dimer testing (using either the SimpliRed assay or IL-Test) followed by ultrasound imaging if the d-dimer test was positive or if the patient was judged likely to have DVT; if the d-dimer test was negative and the patient was categorized as unlikely to have DVT, the diagnosis was considered ruled out, and no further testing was done. In the control group, ultrasound was…