proADM Measurement in Patient Samples for Platelet Risk Stratification
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a lack of reliable diagnostic and prognostic markers for abnormal platelet levels, particularly in critically ill patients, which can lead to misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment of conditions like disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and organ failure.
Innovation Solution
The method involves determining the level of proadrenomedullin (proADM) or its fragments in a patient sample, which correlates with abnormal platelet levels, allowing for the diagnosis, prognosis, and risk stratification of conditions such as DIC and organ failure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If Procalcitonin (PCT) is used to assess infectious load, then diagnostic capability is improved, but accurate measurement of disease severity is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the diagnostic assessment into two distinct components: infectious load assessment (using PCT) and disease severity assessment (using proADM). This segmentation allows each biomarker to fulfill its specific diagnostic function without compromise, as proADM specifically addresses the unmet need for severity measurement while PCT handles infectious load
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces proADM as an intermediary biomarker that specifically mediates the assessment of disease severity and microcirculatory dysfunction. This intermediary fills the diagnostic gap left by PCT, which cannot accurately measure disease severity despite its utility in assessing infectious load
2Measurement precision
If clinical scores such as SOFA, APACHE II, or SAPS II are used to assess disease severity, then comprehensive evaluation is improved, but time resource requirements and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the disease severity assessment function from complex multi-parameter clinical scores and concentrates it into a single biomarker measurement (proADM). This extraction eliminates the need for time-consuming calculation of multiple clinical parameters while maintaining accurate severity assessment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the diagnostic parameter from complex clinical scores requiring multiple physiological measurements to a single biomarker concentration (proADM). This parameter change simplifies the assessment process while preserving diagnostic accuracy for disease severity
3Ease of operation
If platelet count thresholds are used to identify thrombocytopenia, then diagnostic simplicity is improved, but accurate prediction of adverse events is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces proADM as an intermediary marker that specifically predicts adverse events in thrombocytopenic patients. While platelet count provides the basic diagnostic threshold, proADM serves as an additional intermediary that refines risk stratification and improves adverse event prediction accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite diagnostic approach by combining platelet count data with proADM levels. This composite methodology integrates the simplicity of threshold-based platelet diagnosis with the predictive power of proADM, achieving both ease of operation and measurement precision
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for determining, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment guidance, treatment monitoring, risk assessment and/or risk stratification of patients with abnormal platelet levels comprising providing a sample of said patient, determining a level of proadrenomedullin (proADM) or fragment(s) thereof in said sample, wherein said level of proADM or fragment(s) thereof correlates with the abnormal platelet levels in said patient. In embodiments of the invention, a level of proADM or fragment(s) thereof of high severity indicates low platelet levels in the subject and subsequent initiating or modifying a treatment of the patient to improve said condition. In some embodiments of the invention the method comprises determining a level of one or more additional markers in a sample isolated from the patient, such as the level of platelets, the level of PCT or fragment(s) thereof, one or more markers of thrombocytopenia and/or one or more markers of an inflammatory response.