Can pregnancy cause ITP

[Avantidave1988]

At present I am responding well to steroid but my doctors are saying pregnancy can trigger ITP..very scared with this thought

[scaryteacher]

Yes, it can. It's how mine was triggered. 21 years on and I'm still doing OK for the most part, just tired, and only have meds for a GA, otherwise none, except for paracetamol or when I had shingles this year. Count holding at about 35-40.

[AngeHere in reply to scaryteacher]

What do you mean by GA? x

[scaryteacher in reply to AngeHere]

General Anaesthetic.

[AngeHere in reply to scaryteacher]

Oh I thought so but wasnt sure. I had a general anaesthetic yesterday but dont think I needed any meds. My count was 53 last week and they didnt do a blood test yesterday.

[scaryteacher in reply to AngeHere]

If you are over 50 on your count, it's OK without meds for a GA I think.

[AngeHere]

I developed ITP during my second pregnancy. My platelets rose after delivery (natural birth) but then dropped again in the months following. They concluded initially that I was fine but because I insisted on follow up blood tests, we picked up that there is a drop. It's nearly 5 years since, and I just saw a haematologist to start investigating whether it is ITP or something else. My baby was born without passing it on to him, I should add, which is a massive blessing.

[Avantidave1988 in reply to AngeHere]

hope you are able to maintain safe count since then

[AngeHere in reply to Avantidave1988]

Yes thank you. The lowest so far was last week, at 53. What are yours? Xx

[Avantidave1988 in reply to AngeHere]

m undergoing steroid treatment now currently tapered to 5mg starting from 50mg 3 months back so able to maintain 140..I put fingers crossed that after completion of treatment I can maintain stable safe number

[scaryteacher in reply to Avantidave1988]

Many with ITP, like me, don't have meds, and life is fine. Some have a count of 10, and no meds. If you feel OK, and no bruising or bleeding, why take meds unless you have to? My count is stable between 35-40 ish, and I was told to leave the meds until I had real problems when I get older.

[Platelet4000 in reply to Avantidave1988]

hey der?

did u gain weight wit steriods?

[ItsRalphy]

My Itp was also diagnosed at the end of my second pregnancy at the age of 32. I'm not sure what my levels were then, there was no follow up for many months and I had a lovely new baby to distract me. Didn't even know what a platelet was back then! Did the pregnancy kick it of? I'm not sure though with the amount of blood tests you have in pregnancy I know it wasn't present early on but was indicated in last blood test before my daughter was born. Bit of a coincidence? My first pregnancy showed no sign of Itp so maybe age related too? As long as the medical staff know about yr Itp they can hopefully keep it in check. Wishing you wellness for the future!

[PKScott]

Yes. Thrombocytopenia, or a low blood platelet count, is encountered in 7-8% of all pregnancies. Sometimes a low platelet count is discovered when a woman is pregnant. If that’s the case, it is important to determine if the low platelet count is associated with pregnancy (gestational thrombocytopenia) or due to another cause, such as ITP.

[Kuhel]

Five weeks after deliver twins I started bruising badly. At my six week post my ob gym said I was probably just running into things 😡Then ordered the wrong blood test. A week later my mouth and nose were bleeding and bruises the size of cantaloupe. I went to the ER and was immediately surrounded by doctors. I was at 152k discharge but was less than 1k 5 weeks later. After 8 months and three rounds of tapering steroids my numbers are above 150. Very scary. I am now seeing the rho ham shot helps ITP. I got the rho gam shot because of my blood type and wonder if it is related.