A patient has a splitting headache shortly before getting her blood tested.She takes a couple of aspirin and is scheduled for platelet aggregation studies.What effect will this have on the platelet aggregation studies?
A)Platelets will show diminished activity with selected agonists.
B)Platelets will show normal activity with all agonists.
C)Platelets will show increased activity with selected agonists.
D)Platelets will show variable activity with all agonists.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Aspirin is a platelet inhibitor and it works by irreversibly inhibiting the enzyme cyclooxygenase which is responsible for the production of thromboxane A2, a potent platelet aggregator. Therefore, when a patient takes aspirin before platelet aggregation studies, the platelets will show diminished activity with selected agonists. This is because aspirin inhibits thromboxane A2 production, which is required for platelet aggregation. However, it should be noted that aspirin may not affect all agonists equally and some types of platelet aggregation studies may be less affected by aspirin than others.

A Patient Has a Splitting Headache Shortly Before Getting Her