Evaluation of a biochemical method for measuring platelet life-span.

Acetylsalicylic Acid (Aspirin) inhibits the formation of Malonaldehyde, a degradation product of the proaggregating Prostaglandins, during the life-span platelets in the circulating blood. After ingestion of 1.5 g of aspirin, there is a blockage of the formation of Malonaldehyde, followed by a progressive return to normal values, after an average of 8 days, in a healthy person. This fact is applied to the determination of half-life, found to be 3.7 +/- 1.3 days; a value in accord with those found by the isotopic method using 51Cr. The reproductibility of this method indicates a clinical application.