INR. WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN ?

[poppystorey]

Please explain to me ,my Inr at the moment is 1.3 heading for 2.5 my sisters is 8.5 heading for 2.5 what is the difference in these two bloods ,just curios and need to know as much as possible .Thank you Poppystorey

[warfarin1]

Hi poppystorey

The INR (International Normalised Ratio) is a test that determines how long your blood will take to clot compared to someone who is not on warfarin. A person who is not on warfarin will have an INR of 1 or just under.

Depending on why you are taking warfarin as to what your ideal therapuetic range will be. So for example for atrial fibrillation most people need to be between 2 to 3. So your ideal range will be around 2.5. Two and a half times longer to clot.

At 1.3 you are not in your ideal range and are not getting the protection you need, as you say you ned to be around 2.5 Presumably your dose of warfarin has been increased to get you there.

If your sister also has AF at 8.5 she is well out of her range and more likely to bleed and her warfarin should have been adjusted, to reduce her INR as quickly as possible.

[poppystorey in reply to warfarin1]

thank you ,no my sister doesn't have the same complaint , yes they have now increased my dose to 4mgs a day and I return to clinic on Friday this week ,thank you for your very clear explanation . poppystorey

[Offcut]

A little trivia re INR and Warfarin.

I am lead to understand they test your blood in a test tube with a ball bearing and a magnet which rotates and it is the point that it falls off the magnet because the blood has thickened is your INR. They do use sticks and machines similar to sugar testing as well.

I read an article on how Warfarin was found it was a fungus on a clover that cows were eating and suffering internal bleeding which at some point became a lightbulb moment for someone.

[TheStand]

Offcut,

Interesting info... I had never heard that.

Poppystorey,

As warfarin (love the login name) states... It is a measure of time that the blood will take to clot. The desired range for most is 2 to 3 which roughly means it will take 2 to 3 times longer for the blood to clot than would a person not taking an anticoagulant. This is a big factor when thinking about a person with AF. Most attacks last around 12 hours (give or take) and there have been quite a few studies showing that a clot can form in as little as 2 to 4 hours during an attack. Doubling or tripling that time can keep a clot from having time to form.

Your reading should go up. A change in dose can take 2 to 3 days to register in the blood and increasing dosage to fast can easily cause a person to over shoot there desired level by a large amount. Then lowering will take a few days to work. So they have started sort of "sneaking up on it" instead of trying to raise it fast.

Your sisters at 8.5 is really high. Did she just start taking warfarin?

Tim

[poppystorey in reply to TheStand]

Thank you for your speedy response ,my sister as been on warfarin for awhile but has a much different problem to me ,hers was much higher and she had four clots already .my irregular heart beat and fast rate were diagnosed recently after my annual check up of medication ,although I had comlained of breathlessness for some time ,being told weight ,age ,adult asma could be the cause and oh the other one was fluid retention in the lower abdomen ,but at least now it is clear what is wrong .By the way my login in name is part the name of my uncles chinese girlfriend during the war and the last part my grandmothers name who took good care of me hence poppystorey

[Bagrat in reply to TheStand]

Interesting about the clot forming studies (2-4 hours). I've been advised I can stay home if (when!!)I go into AF again unless i feel ill. Cardio said but I could starve in case I needed a cardioversion ( paddle variety). Ok now I presume, as on warfarin, but first time in AF I was cardioverted 14 hours after onset and told OK to cardiovert within 24 - 48 hours as I knew exactly when it started.

Wendy B