D-dimer evaluation in pregnancy

Dr Wendy Lim is a professor in the Division of Hematology and Thromboembolism at McMaster University.

Should we evaluate D-dimer levels in pregnancy?

Wendy Lim, MD, MSc: We know that D-dimer is a very good test but it certainly can be influenced by certain conditions such as pregnancy, inflammation, or systemic infection. Right now, at the present time, the D-dimer [test] has not been well validated in pregnancy, so we oftentimes will caution against its use or its interpretation in the setting of pregnancy.