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Heparin‐induced thrombocytopenia in myeloproliferative disorders: A rare or under‐diagnosed complication?
Author(s) -
Spectre Galia,
Kalish Yossi,
Schliamser Liliana,
Varon David
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
american journal of hematology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.456
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1096-8652
pISSN - 0361-8609
DOI - 10.1002/ajh.21128
Subject(s) - medicine , heparin induced thrombocytopenia , heparin , thrombosis , platelet , complication , myeloproliferative disorders , surgery
Patients with myeloproliferative disorders (MPD) are prone to develop thrombotic complications and thus frequently receive heparin. Surprisingly heparin‐induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) has been rarely reported in MPD and is potentially under‐diagnosed due to the relatively high platelet count. We report three patients with MPD who developed HIT; all presented with a relative fall of platelet counts (although without an absolute thrombocytopenia), thrombosis or skin necrosis and a positive test for HIT antibodies (particle gel immunoassay). Risk factors for developing HIT in our patients were exposure to unfractionated heparin, a recent surgical procedure and female gender. We review the literature on HIT in MPD and discuss the diagnosis of HIT in the absence of an absolute thrombocytopenia. Am. J. Hematol., 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.