Idiopathic Thrombocytopenia Purpura
Definition
Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is a bleeding disorder caused by an abnormally low level of blood platelets, small disc-shaped cells essential to blood clotting (coagulation). ITP describes both the cause and symptoms of the condition: idiopathic means that the disorder has no apparent cause; thrombocytopenia refers to a decreased number of blood platelets; and purpura refers to a purplish or reddish-brown skin rash caused by the leakage into the skin of blood from broken capillaries. ITP is as of 2004 often called immune thrombocytopenic purpura rather than idiopathic because studies in the early 2000s have shown the presence of autoimmune antibodies in the blood. Other names for ITP include purpura hemorrhagica and essential thrombocytopenia.
Description
Coagulation,...
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