Honors Anatomy and Physiology Unit 9 Case Study

1. How and where are platelets produced in the body?

Platelets are found on bone marrow and are produced from broken off pieces of the cytoplasm from bone marrow cells.

2. Describe the role played by platelets in hemostasis.

Platelets help repair broken blood vessels.

3. Define thrombocytopenia and list the more common causes of this condition.

Thrombocytopenia is when someone’s platelet count is low. Some of the common causes of this disease include a decrease in bone marrow, infection, drugs, and anemia.

4. What are the potential consequences of a low platelet count?

The potential consequence of a low platelet count is that it is harder for your blood to clot, and just a minor injury could make you bleed to death.

5. What drugs have been associated with the development of thrombocytopenia?

Some drugs associated with the development of thrombocytopenia are chemotherapy, some steroids, zantac, and aspirin.

6. How is thrombocytopenia treated in individuals diagnosed with the condition?

The type of treatment you get would depend on the severity of the case, but some of the possible treatments are blood or platelet transfusions, steroids, immunoglobulins, and a splenectomy.

7. How might removal of the spleen (splenectomy) result in an increase in the number of circulating platelets?

The spleen is supposed to remove antibodies from RBCs, so without the production of antibodies, the number of platelets should increase.

8. What is Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP)?

ITP is a bleeding disorder where blood doesn’t clot as well as it should due to a low number of platelets.