Hello
Since the start of my husband's cirrhosis journey last August, with a variceal bleed, his platelets went as low as 2700. Since then they rose to 6000 at one point and are now back down to 5000. I thought they would have gone much more by now but he is also on blood thinners because he has portal vein thrombosis. Do the blood thinners keep platelets low? Or does it take a very long time, if ever, for platelets to go back up? Thanks
If he has an enlarged spleen and portal hypertension as a symptom of cirrhosis they may not go back into normal range - I know that my hubbies were only 22 (000) before his 2nd liver biopsy and he had to have a platelet transfusion.
Being on blood thinners will almost certainly also contribute to a low platelet count. That is what blood thinners do, it's platelets that cause blood clotting and blood thinners prevent blood clotting.
Thank you. We have an ultrasound this week to check the portal vein, mesenteric vein etc. I guess they will tell us if we get to the stage when a platelet transfusion is necessary.
My hubby only had that single transfusion which was before a biopsy and due to the increased bleeding risk. The experts will keep you right.
Katie
Thank you Katie. I hope your husband is doing well xx
Sadly not, he's very frail and suffering badly with HE - just keeping our fingers crossed that his transplant call comes sooner rather than later. On the plus side we have finally sited our caravan just outside Edinburgh today so we have our accommodation sorted for whenever the call does come.
Katie
Sorry to hear that Katie. It's such a rollercoaster. I remember before, when he was stable and you said he had been doing quite well for about 10 years if I remembe correctly. My husband is about 6 months into this journey. At the moment things look stable and I know he's hoping not to do a transplant. He's 68 and we are in the process of being evaluated for transplant, primarily due to portal vein thrombosis, which makes him a candidate. We have moved to Italy and at the university hospital in Padova they do transplants until 76 yr old. What has been hinted to him, is that it's best to get a transplant soon rather than wait for a few years even he's stable, because if things deteriorate he won't then have access to the transplant. I don't know why but I have it in my mind that a liver that has been decompensated would have at best 10 years of function but I'm sure that's not necessarily the case. Shortly we'll have news on the situation on the portal vein thrombosis with a CT scan. Ultrasound done yesterday shows some improvement but not all the area is seen on US. Luckily in Padova, portal vein thrombosis is not a contraindication for transplant.
I really do hope you get that call soon. One less worry to have your caravan spot sorted out and handy for Edinburgh. How far down do you have to come? Is there an very rough / average waiting time for an available liver? Wishing you all the very best
Lucia
Yes he was previously on t/p list in 2014-15 and delisted when bloods etc improved. Had what we now consider a reasonable 9 years with lots of walking and laterly cycling - almost 400 miles on our mountain bikes in May last year and by November his health plummeted and he couldn't even figure out how to mount his bike. Anyway we are just waiting for the correct donor and fingers crossed a successful transplant.
There will be no miracle bounce back this time round, sadly.
Katie
My husbands platelet count has never really recovered. He is also on blood thinners due to portal vein thrombosis, so his results always read with note that it is "uninterpretable but stable due to warferin"
How long has your husband been on blood thinners if you don't mind me asking? Is his thrombosis changing at all? My husband, since last September. He just had an ultrasound and was told the thrombosis seemed not too bad. But parts could not be seen so he will have a CT scan, after seeing an emostasi specialist.
I have been on this journey for nearly 12 years and my experience is that my platelets are always low. I have never had a blood transfusion either nor am I on blood thinners. Mine are usually around the high 50's which has been 'normal' for me, but they are dropping monthly and are currently 46. I am spitting up small amounts of blood and therefore am awaiting an appointment with ENT.
If you are spitting up blood, you need to see someone immediately, good luck!
Thank you Sophia. I have had chest X-ray. Plus Ultrasound scan of my chest. All came back negative. My liver dept. are aware and am awaiting ENT appointment.
I had a liver transplant and they went by a meld score. 19 the lowest 25 you get your transplant. Be very careful as once it reaches that state of cirrhosis it dies off a lot faster. Mine went so fast I had a transplant in 21/2 months. Be careful and get well. Prayers
It may take a little while, but try stopping all alcohol, eating more green like spinach, beets, and salads. If you can stop all ant-inflmatory meds like advil, alieve, ets. Drink lots of water My husband had low platelets and they wanted to biopsy him and put him on meds and go to a specialist and we increased his platelets naturally. He was in the normal range when tested a few months later.🙂
Hi. Thank you for your reply. Did your husband have low platelets in the context of cirrhosis? Mu husband definitely has no alcohol, has a very healthy and no salt diet, no meds at all other that the ones for his condition and has to limit his water intake to avoid ascites. However I hope his platelets will go up at some point.
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