Plastic containers and the whole-blood clotting test: glass remains the best option

Abstract

This is the first study to identify normal whole-blood clotting times in various plastic containers and to identify the effect of the addition of various concentrations of Pseudechis australis (Mulga snake) venom on the clotting time in glass and plastic. Polycarbonate was identified as a potential alternative to glass as a testing container owing to a whole-blood clotting time within acceptable limits for a bedside test (mean 29.5 min) and equivalent performance to glass in the presence of P. australis venom. Other plastic containers (such as polypropylene and polyethylene) were found to be unsuitable owing to very prolonged clotting times (>60 min)or impaired performance in the presence of venom. Overall, owing to the variation between the performance of different plastics and the difficulty in differentiating between them, plastic containers cannot be recommended as an alternative to glass when performing the whole-blood clotting test for envenomed patients.