Evaluation of a screening tool for bleeding disorders in a US multisite cohort of women with menorrhagia

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the usefulness of a simple screening tool for bleeding disorders in a multisite population of women with menorrhagia. STUDY DESIGN: Women with menorrhagia between the ages of 18 and 50 years from 6 geographically diverse US centers underwent hemostatic testing for bleeding disorders, complete blood cell count, and ferritin. A questionnaire that contained all elements of the 8-question screening tool was administered. Sensitivity of the screening tool, a screening tool with a pictorial blood assessment chart (PBAC) score of > 185, and a screening tool with serum ferritin were calculated for hemostatic disorders. RESULTS: Two hundred and seventeen women who were identified with a PBAC score of >= 100 participated in the study. The sensitivity of the screening tool was 89% for hemostatic defects, and sensitivity increased to 93% and 95% with a serum ferritin level of <= 20 ng/mL and a PBAC score of > 185, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study confirms the usefulness of a short screening tool for the stratification of women with menorrhagia for hemostatic evaluation.