The LA-sensitive PTT (LA-PTT or PTT-LA) is a variant PTT, designed to evaluate the presence of lupus anticoagulant (LA), an antibody associated with clotting episodes and recurrent miscarriages. The LA-PTT uses a low phospholipid reagent that is optimized for detecting lupus anticoagulants and is therefore more sensitive to LA. The test is based on the principle that lupus anticoagulant binds to the phospholipids that are used as one of the reagents in the PTT test, causing an abnormally prolonged clotting time.
Lupus anticoagulants (LA) are antibodies produced by the immune system that mistakenly attack certain components of the body’s own cells. They specifically target phospholipids as well as the proteins associated with phospholipids that are found in the outer-most layer of cells (cell membranes). These autoantibodies interfere with the blood clotting process in a way that is not fully understood and increase a person’s risk of developing a blood clot. Lupus anticoagulant testing is a series of tests that detect the presence of LA in the blood.
The term “anticoagulant” is part of the name because LA actually prolong clotting time in laboratory tests that are used to evaluate coagulation. For example, they inhibit the chemical reactions that lead to clotting in the partial thromboplastin time (PTT), a test routinely used to evaluate clotting. However, the presence of LA in the human body is associated with an increased risk of developing inappropriate blood clots. Importantly, lupus anticoagulant itself does not cause bleeding in the body.
There is no single test for the detection of lupus anticoagulant and it cannot be measured directly. The presence of LA is usually determined by using a panel of sequential tests for which there is no standardization.
- Initial testing typically involves one or more tests that depend on phospholipid-containing reagents, usually PTT, the LA-sensitive PTT (known as PTT-LA) or dilute Russell viper venom test (DRVVT). All of these tests measure the time it takes (in seconds) for a plasma sample to clot; LA prolongs that time.
- Depending on the results of these initial tests, certain follow-up tests are performed to either confirm or exclude the presence of lupus anticoagulant.
LA may increase the risk of developing blood clots in both the veins and arteries, often in the veins in the legs (known as deep vein thrombosis or DVT). These clots may block blood flow in any part of the body, leading to stroke, heart attack, or pulmonary embolism. LA is also associated with recurrent miscarriages. It has been suggested that LA causes clots to form that block blood vessels of the placenta, affecting growth of the developing baby, and that LA may also directly attack the tissue of the placenta, affecting its development.
The lupus anticoagulant is one of three primary antiphospholipid antibodies that are associated with an increased risk of thrombosis and antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS), an autoimmune disorder characterized by excess blood clot formation, organ failures, and pregnancy complications. The other two are cardiolipin antibodies and beta-2 glycoprotein 1 antibody. Individually and together, they increase a person’s tendency to clot inappropriately. People with APS are at greater risk for clotting if they test positive for all three antibodies. However, thrombosis appears more common in people with LA.
Not everyone with antiphospholipid antibodies will develop symptoms. Antiphospholipid antibodies are present in about 5% of healthy individuals.
What does it mean if your PTT-LA Screen result is too high?
A prolonged PTT may be due to a nonspecific inhibitor such as the lupus anticoagulant - this is an autoantibody (antiphospholipid antibody) that interferes with the PTT because it targets substances called phospholipids that are used in the PTT. Though they can prolong the PTT result, in the body they are associated with excessive clotting. A person who produces these antibodies may be at an increased risk for a blood clot.
All Your Lab Results.
One Simple Dashboard.
Import, Track, and Share Your Lab Results Easily
Import, Track, and Share Your Lab Results
Import lab results from multiple providers, track changes over time, customize your reference ranges, and get clear explanations for each result. Everything is stored securely, exportable in one organized file, and shareable with your doctor—or anyone you choose.
Cancel or upgrade anytime
Laboratories
Bring All Your Lab Results Together — In One Place
We accept reports from any lab, so you can easily collect and organize all your health information in one secure spot.
Pricing Table
Gather Your Lab History — and Finally Make Sense of It
Finally, Your Lab Results Organized and Clear
Personal plans
$79/ year
Advanced Plan
Access your lab reports, explanations, and tracking tools.
- Import lab results from any provider
- Track all results with visual tools
- Customize your reference ranges
- Export your full lab history anytime
- Share results securely with anyone
- Receive 5 reports entered for you
- Cancel or upgrade anytime
$250/ once
Unlimited Account
Pay once, access everything—no monthly fees, no limits.
- Import lab results from any provider
- Track all results with visual tools
- Customize your reference ranges
- Export your full lab history anytime
- Share results securely with anyone
- Receive 10 reports entered for you
- No subscriptions. No extra fees.
$45/ month
Pro Monthly
Designed for professionals managing their clients' lab reports
- Import lab results from any provider
- Track lab results for multiple clients
- Customize reference ranges per client
- Export lab histories and reports
- Begin with first report entered by us
- Cancel or upgrade anytime
About membership
What's included in a Healthmatters membership
Import Lab Results from Any Source
See Your Health Timeline
Understand What Your Results Mean
Visualize Your Results
Data Entry Service for Your Reports
Securely Share With Anyone You Trust
Let Your Lab Results Tell the Full Story
Once your results are in one place, see the bigger picture — track trends over time, compare data side by side, export your full history, and share securely with anyone you trust.
Bring all your results together to compare, track progress, export your history, and share securely.
What Healthmatters Members Are Saying
Frequently asked questions
Healthmatters is a personal health dashboard that helps you organize and understand your lab results. It collects and displays your medical test data from any lab in one secure, easy-to-use platform.
- Individuals who want to track and understand their health over time.
- Health professionals, such as doctors, nutritionists, and wellness coaches, need to manage and interpret lab data for their clients.
With a Healthmatters account, you can:
- Upload lab reports from any lab
- View your data in interactive graphs, tables, and timelines
- Track trends and monitor changes over time
- Customize your reference ranges
- Export and share your full lab history
- Access your results anytime, from any device
Professionals can also analyze client data more efficiently and save time managing lab reports.
Healthmatters.io personal account provides in-depth research on 10000+ biomarkers, including information and suggestions for test panels such as, but not limited to:
- The GI Effects® Comprehensive Stool Profile,
- GI-MAP,
- The NutrEval FMV®,
- The ION Profile,
- Amino Acids Profile,
- Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones (DUTCH),
- Organic Acids Test,
- Organix Comprehensive Profile,
- Toxic Metals,
- Complete Blood Count (CBC),
- Metabolic panel,
- Thyroid panel,
- Lipid Panel,
- Urinalysis,
- And many, many more.
You can combine all test reports inside your Healthmatters account and keep them in one place. It gives you an excellent overview of all your health data. Once you retest, you can add new results and compare them.
If you are still determining whether Healthmatters support your lab results, the rule is that if you can test it, you can upload it to Healthmatters.
We implement proven measures to keep your data safe.
At HealthMatters, we're committed to maintaining the security and confidentiality of your personal information. We've put industry-leading security standards in place to help protect against the loss, misuse, or alteration of the information under our control. We use procedural, physical, and electronic security methods designed to prevent unauthorized people from getting access to this information. Our internal code of conduct adds additional privacy protection. All data is backed up multiple times a day and encrypted using SSL certificates. See our Privacy Policy for more details.