The Journal of the Association of Physicians of Tamil Nadu
Issue 1
Platelets in Chronic Liver Disease: Beyond Number
Open Access
Year 2021,
Issue 1
,
April 2021
,
Pages 1-8
The journal is published as a quarterly issue.
AUTHORS
Dr. Purushothaman Padmanabhan1,
Dr. Nagendram Dinakaran1,
Dr. Vamsi Chaitanya Gude1,
Dr. Syed Mohammed Akbar Hassan1,
Dr. Ravi Rajan1
1 –
|
Meenakshi Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, Kancheepuram, Tamil Nadu |
HISTORY
Available Online:
April 2021
ABSTRACT
Objectives:Thrombocytopenia, a complication of Chronic Liver Disease (CLD), is considered to be a marker of advanced disease and an independent predictor of mortality. But this is disputable, and hence is this study
- To find out the prevalence of thrombocytopenia in CLD;
- To find out association with severity of Liver disease and Thrombocytopenia.
Materials and Methods:This was a descriptive study analyzing CLD patients diagnosed by clinical, biochemical, serological, and radiological evaluation in our institution between March 2019 and December 2020.
Results:There were 48 patients; M: F43:5; mean age 51.7±12.4 years; Thrombocytopenia: Mild (149999 – 75000/mm
3) in 45.8%, moderate (74999 – 50000/mm
3) in 12.5% and severe (< 49999/mm
3) in 8.3%. There was no association of thrombocytopenia with severity indices like Child-Pugh Class (C. P. C.) and Model for End-stage Liver Disease – Sodium (MELD-Na) Score.
Conclusion:The prevalence of thrombocytopenia in CLD is 66.6% in this study. Thrombocytopenia is not associated with the severity of the disease. This necessitates larger studies and analyzing the factors other than a number of platelets. This includes
- Functional status of platelets (thrombocythemia)
- In a stable CLD, homeostasis and coagulation pathways achieve a delicate “rebalance state” (new normal) which may be disturbed even by trivial insult.
- Platelets also secrete platelet-derived growth factors, transforming growth factor β, hepatocyte growth factor, which can influence liver fibrosis and regeneration.
KEYWORDS
thrombocytopenia,
chronic liver disease,
portal hypertension,
homeostasis,
coagulation.
COPYRIGHT
© 2021 Dr. Vijay Viswanathan, published by Association of Physicians of India-Tamilnadu State Chapter