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Platelet Disorders: Diagnostic Tests and Their Interpretations

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Nonmalignant Hematology

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Abstract

Platelet counts below and above the normal range, thrombocytopenia and thrombocytosis, respectively, are encountered frequently in clinical practice. Because both thrombocytopenia and thrombocytosis can be associated with bleeding and with arterial and venous thrombosis, they engender substantial and appropriate concern by treating physicians. However, the number of circulating platelets in normal individuals is far in excess of the number required for normal hemostasis, and thrombocytosis due to concurrent illness is not generally associated with hemostatic abnormalities. Thus, understanding normal platelet physiology and pathophysiology is essential so that patients at risk are appropriately evaluated and treated, while patients who are not are spared unnecessary expense and worry. The nature of this problem is illustrated by patients admitted to intensive care units. Approximately 30–50 % of patients in intensive units become thrombocytopenic at some point during their intensive care unit stay (Crowther et al. 2005). Thrombocytopenia in this setting has been associated with increased bleeding, increased transfusion of blood products, longer intensive care unit stays, and increased intensive care unit and hospital mortality. Nonetheless, workups to identify specific and treatable causes for the thrombocytopenia, while often extensive, are usually futile.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, WWW-403, New Haven, CT, 208021, USA

    Scott F. Huntington MD

  2. Hematology-Oncology Division, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 814 BRB II/III, 421 Curie Blvd., Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Mark H. O’Hara MD & Joel S. Bennett MD

Authors
  1. Scott F. Huntington MD
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  2. Mark H. O’Hara MD
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  3. Joel S. Bennett MD
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Correspondence to Joel S. Bennett MD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantion, Zion, Illinois, USA

    Syed A. Abutalib

  2. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Jean M. Connors

  3. Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

    Margaret V. Ragni

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Huntington, S.F., O’Hara, M.H., Bennett, J.S. (2016). Platelet Disorders: Diagnostic Tests and Their Interpretations. In: Abutalib, S., Connors, J., Ragni, M. (eds) Nonmalignant Hematology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30352-9_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-30352-9_16

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