There are a number of reasons and conditions that might just trigger a low platelet count or an increase in the breakdown of blood platelets.
Some possible causes are as follows:
Blood Poisoning – this is usually caused by severe bacterial infections which will leaad to a low platelt count and subsequent blood platelet destruction.
Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome – This is a rare disorder that causes the platelets to plummet. This is also accompanied by destruction of the red blood cells and damage to the kidneys. Sometimes this occurs when the person has contracted a severe bacterial infection such as E.Coli (Escherichia coli), which can be acquired from eating uncooked or undercooked meat, such as hamburger.
Pregnancy – Sometimes and in some unusual circumstances when the body is pregnant it destroys some of its own platelets.
Which can cause a mild case of thrombocytopenia (bruising).
Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) – A blood disorder in which your immune system mistakenly identifies platelets as a threat to the body and creates antibodies that attack the platelets.
Other autoimmune diseases – These range from rheumatoid arthritis, some cancers and even lupus. A lot of these conditions lead to destruction of the platelets because the immune system has malfunctioned.
Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) – This is a rare, sometimes genetic, life-threatening condition. This happens when small blood clots spontaneously occur throughout your body, causing a large number of platelets to be spent in the process. In most cases of TTP the cause is unknown. In some of the cases it might be related to experiencing an infection or a chronic disease.
Drugs and medications – It is acknowledged by the medical community that certain drugs and medications can low platelet production by confusing the immune system and causing it to destroy platelets. Some examples include sulfa-containing antibiotics, heparin, quinidine, quinine, some oral diabetes drugs, gold salts and rifampin.
Thrombocytopenia induced by Heparin, has been known to cause excessive blood clotting instead of bleeding. This increases the risk of clot forming blood clots deep within a leg blood vessel. This can be lifethreatening and very dangerous as the blood stream may carry the clot to your lungs.
Trapped platelets in the spleen – The spleen normally functions to fight infection and filter unwanted waste material from your blood. It is an organ about the size of your fist and is located on the left side of your abdomen just below your rib cage. Sometimes and enlarged spleen, which can be caused by any number of disorders, may hold on to too many blood platelets, thereby causing a low platelet count in the blood.
These are just a sampling of possible causes of a low platelet count. If you have signs of a low platelet count please consider looking into natural means to build up your blood platelet levels.
