What is ITP? Acquired blood disease in which a deficiency of platelets occurs due to a malfunction of the immune system.
Course and prognosis: Individual course, prediction not possible, spontaneous cure possible (especially in children). ITP patients who are treated have a normal life expectancy.
Treatment: Wait and see and regular medical check-ups (watch and wait), corticosteroids, immunotherapy, thrombopoietin receptor agonists, splenic tyrosine kinase inhibitors, removal of spleen.
Symptoms: increased bleeding tendency (bruising, bleeding from minor injuries), pinhead-sized bleeding of skin and mucous membranes is typical, fatigue, some patients show no symptoms
Causes: Autoimmune disease (immune system forms antibodies against platelets), trigger usually unknown
Risk factors: In 20 percent of cases, ITP is a consequence of another disease such as arthritis, lymphoma, cancer, HIV or herpes infection.
