Letter to the Editor

Thrombocytopenia in NAFLD: Is Thrombopoietin Involved?

Authors: Constantin A. Dasanu, MD, PhD, Samuel Lamana, PA-C, Guru Trikudanathan, MD

Abstract

To the Editor:


Splenomegaly is rather common in patients with liver disease. Alternatively, various cytopenias are not infrequently identified in subjects with various degrees of liver dysfunction. Cytopenias have long been attributed to sequestration and/or destruction of the blood cells in the enlarged spleen, leading to the term “hypersplenism.” The most common cytopenia in this context is thrombocytopenia. Although it represents a marked feature of the end-stage liver disease, its significance in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is less clear.

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References

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2. Peck-Radosavljevic M, Zacherl J, Meng YG, et al. Is inadequate thrombopoietin production a major cause of thrombocytopenia in cirrhosis of the liver? J Hepatol 1997;27:127-131.
 
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4. Freni MA, Spadaro A, Ajello A, et al. Serum thrombopoietin in chronic liver disease: relation to severity of the disease and spleen size. Hepatogastroenterology 2002;49:1382-1385.