The course of the disease | The reduced platelet count – When does it become dangerous?

The course of the disease

The course of a patient with low platelets can change from clinically unremarkable to life-threatening. If the number of thrombocytes drops, this can be caused by an ever increasing bleeding time. The size of the injuries leading to bleeding becomes smaller and smaller.

Injuries that would otherwise be harmless can lead to an unstoppable bleeding and major blood loss. Petechiae, tiny bleedings of the vessels or even spontaneous bleedings can occur. If these are associated with a large loss of blood, it can be a life-threatening condition.

At what point does it become dangerous?

In principle, the prognosis for a thrombocyte deficiency depends on the symptoms the patient shows. In most cases, a slight reduction in the values can be well tolerated and compensated by the human body. However, if there is a significantly prolonged bleeding time, up to and including spontaneous bleeding, it can be a life-threatening condition for the patient.

Due to the reduced number of thrombocytes, the body’s own blood clotting does not function or no longer functions as well and the bleeding can no longer be stopped properly. A doctor should always be consulted, especially in the case of major bleeding, which can also affect internal organs. Symptoms that indicate internal bleeding could be bloody or black stools and bloody urine.

Can this also be cancer?

If a thrombocyte deficiency is diagnosed, leukemia is one possible cause. Leukemia is a disease of the blood or blood-forming system. It belongs in the broader sense to the cancer illnesses and is in the vernacular frequently called (white) blood cancer.

The disease involves an increased formation of certain blood cells in the bone marrow. Thrombocytes are also formed in the bone marrow by precursor cells. If an increased formation of other cells now takes place, the new formation of thrombocytes often decreases. As a result, they can be too low in the blood. A tumor that originates from another tissue and presses on the bone marrow could also limit the new formation of thrombocytes and lead to a reduced number in the blood.