Coombs test

The Coombs test (antiglobulin test, AGT) is used to test for the presence of antibodies to erythrocytes. We distinguish 2 variants of the Coombs test:
 * 1) The Coombs direct test is used to diagnose hemolytic anemias caused by anti-erythrocyte antibodies. Using anti-erythrocyte antibodies, we test the presence of these anti-erythrocyte antibodies on the erythrocyte membrane.
 * 2) The Coombs indirect test is used to detect anti-erythrocyte antibodies in the blood plasma of patients after repeated blood transfusions. We use anti-erythrocyte antibodies to test for the presence of anti-erythrocyte antibodies in the blood plasma.