Purpura (patient information): Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Ochuko Ajari (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
Ochuko Ajari (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| Line 8: | Line 8: | ||
{{Purpura (patient information)}} | {{Purpura (patient information)}} | ||
{{CMG}}; {{AE}} [[Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan]], M.B.B.S. | |||
==Overview== | ==Overview== | ||
Revision as of 14:13, 21 February 2013
For the WikiDoc page for this topic, click here
| Purpura (patient information) | |
 |
|---|
|
Purpura |
|
Purpura On the Web |
|---|
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan, M.B.B.S.
Overview
Purpura is purple-colored spots and patches that occur on the skin, organs, and in mucus membranes, including the lining of the mouth.
What causes Purpura?
- Nonthrombocytopenic purpuras may be due to:
- Congenital cytomegalovirus
- Congenital rubella syndrome
- Drugs that affect platelet function
- Fragile blood vessels (senile purpura)
- Pressure changes that occur during vaginal childbirth
- Inflammation of the blood vessels (vasculitis), such as Henoch-Schonlein purpura
- Thrombocytopenic purpura may be due to:
- Drugs that prevent platelets from forming
- Hemangioma
- Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP)
- Immune neonatal thrombocytopenia (can occur in infants whose mothers have ITP)
- Meningococcemia
When to seek urgent medical care?
Call your doctor for an appointment if you have signs of purpura.
Diagnosis
- Your doctor will examine your skin and ask you questions about your medical history and symptoms, including:
- Is this the first time you have had such spots?
- When did they develop?
- What color are they?
- Do they look like bruises?
- What medications do you take?
- What other medical problems have you had?
- Does anyone in your family have similar spots?
- What other symptoms do you have?
- A skin biopsy may be done.
Diseases with similar symptoms
- Purpura occurs when small blood vessels under the skin leak.
- When purpura spots are very small, they are called petechiae. Large purpura are called ecchymoses.
- Platelets help the blood clot. A person with purpura may have normal platelet counts (nonthrombocytopenic purpuras) or decreased platelet counts (thrombocytopenic purpuras).
Where to find medical care for Purpura?
Directions to Hospitals Treating Purpura