Home         Forums  

Go Back   Marrowforums > Bone Marrow Failure Diseases > AA
Register FAQ Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

AA Aplastic anemia

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
  #1  
Old Mon Oct 21, 2013, 10:08 PM
edithr edithr is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: 30 mi West of Cleveland
Posts: 86
Petechial spots and platelets

Are petechial spots a good gauge of your platelet count? Ugh, I'm always sneaking a look at my son's feet, watching for the spots to come back. Thank you!
__________________
Edith, mom to Eric, dx 2/11 at age 15 with SAA, began ATG/CsA 3/11, switched to Tacrolimis 8/11, off all meds 9/11 and is now considered to have bone marrow failure not otherwise specified.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old Tue Oct 22, 2013, 09:27 AM
StephM StephM is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: France
Posts: 19
Hi! All I know is that my brother never had any spots even when the platelets were very low (under 20000). His gums bled once when he was brushing his teeth. That's the only symptom he ever had.
So I would not count on the spots as a gauge. But maybe it depends on people...
__________________
Steph, 25yo brother diagnosed with AA July 2013. Horse ATG Sept, currently on cyclosporin
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old Tue Oct 22, 2013, 07:19 PM
Heather8773 Heather8773 is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Houston, TX
Posts: 254
I think everyone's different but when my husbands been below 15-10 he starts getting petichi..especially if hes been on his feet working etc...
He also will have blood in his nose... No running but blood in the mucus or if he wipes his nose.
Sometimes if it's close to 10 he will have bleeding gums
Once he's in the upper 20's he doesn't get many symptoms.
Hope things are going well for y'all currently!
__________________
Heather, wife of Ronald 36; dx PNH 2012; Dx VSAA 2013; eculizumab(Solaris) hATG 2/20/13 cyclosporine 400 mg daily. 37 units RBC and 15 units of platelets. Post BMT -pentam,vorconizole,valtrex, valcyte, actigall, Pepcid , prograf, magnesium.
10/10 MUD 10/10/13
Now no PNH or AA. Mixed Chimerisim
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old Tue Oct 22, 2013, 08:10 PM
Relentless Against SAA Relentless Against SAA is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 77
There are many things that come into play with low platelet counts. I agree, we see bleeding gums, blood from the nose, bruising easily and petechia with low platelet counts. I believe activity can really effect when you see the petechia- for example: people who walk alot or run will see them with higher platelet counts. We have seen bruising instead of petechia when platelets are low and weve been laying down alot. How hard you brush your teeth can effect when gums bleed. We have been told by the doctors to use a soft bristle tooth brush and brush softer. I feel the only way to know for sure is with a blood count. Hope this helps
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old Fri Oct 25, 2013, 03:34 AM
Ellen McDonough Ellen McDonough is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: United States,Denver,Colorado
Posts: 48
Petichiae was one of my first signs that something was wong when I first found out I had severe aplastic anemia.My paltelets were acrtually the lowest of all 3 lines and still are. So I think there is a good chance you are on to something.
__________________
Ellen McDonough--Denver,Colorado

[57 year old,diagnosed with Severe Aplastic Anemia 4/2009.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old Fri Oct 25, 2013, 07:46 AM
edithr edithr is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: 30 mi West of Cleveland
Posts: 86
It was the first sign that something was wrong with Eric too. I remember he came to me and said, "Mom, I have spots on my feet." Of course I Googled it, and because both my father in law and brother in law died of leukemia, I thought for sure that's what it was. I took him to the doctor, and while his platelets were 106 his wbc was only 1.6. The doc had him come back weekly to keep an eye on things, but a month later his counts totally crashed and we were sent to the emergency room. He was diagnosed with SAA and had hATG.

He now has a diagnosis of "bone marrow failure not otherwise specified," which is like being in limbo. He goes for labs every three months (it was every two until last month), and bone marrow biopsies once a year.

Part of me likes labs because they're reassuring (they've stayed the same for two years), but part of me knows this could go on for years and years and not to worry about it because we'll see symptoms. Like petichiae spots, bleeding gums, bruising...

Thanks for listening. These boards have been invaluable, thank you Neil.
__________________
Edith, mom to Eric, dx 2/11 at age 15 with SAA, began ATG/CsA 3/11, switched to Tacrolimis 8/11, off all meds 9/11 and is now considered to have bone marrow failure not otherwise specified.
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old Thu Oct 31, 2013, 02:14 AM
alanderson alanderson is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Twin Cities, Minnesota
Posts: 2
That should have been my first signal something was wrong also, but, I just blew it off. A few months later my mom asked me about a bruise I had on my knee - it had been there so long I couldn't remember how I got it anymore. Then I went in....

I still get petechiae once in a while and my plates have been around 150 for years.

20 years post treatment and I still get annual CBC checks and I confess that I also love getting labs, it is nice to be reassured you're still in the clear. I don't mind at all going to get them, I look forward to it
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Dark Purple Splotches Data MDS 6 Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:40 AM
Please help me i dont know how to help my father ziad adore my father MDS 85 Wed May 16, 2012 01:55 PM
Frequency of platelet transfusion Neel Transfusions and Iron Overload 21 Thu Jun 9, 2011 08:55 PM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 07:00 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Forum sites may contain non-authoritative and unverified information.
Medical decisions should be made in consultation with qualified medical professionals.
Site contents exclusive of member posts Copyright © 2006-2020 Marrowforums.org