I am so tired of being a 'medical mystery.' I had a form of Crohn's (my doctor called it the 'simmering' kind) that puzzled all my doctors. I'd have barium swallows, colonoscopies, CT scans with IV contrast, blood work, that would show only minimal narrowing, but then they'd open me up and my insides would be a mess -- massive blockages (usually caused by adhesions), lots of infection, etc. Yet none of it ever showed on tests. I started averaging resections every 14 months, no matter the maintenance meds they put me on (and I've been on every Crohns med on the market). Then this blood clot that seemed to come out of nowhere and broke into several pieces, stitches inside me that kept falling apart (the tissues inside me woudn't hold together). I still have pallor in my right ankle and lower calf that no one can explain (that was the leg that had the original blood clot). Then I get my lab work results Friday and my platelet count is suddenly really high, at 520 (415 is the upper range of normal) when the week before it was 260. And my PT level (I'm on coumadin) jumped, so now they want me to reduce my daily coumadin intake to 5 mg from 6 mg. But my doctor has no explanation for the jump in my platelet count, which is hugely worrisome since that has to do with how well your blood clots, and it was a blood clot that ruined my life 7 months ago. Sorry for the venting, but I'm just getting SO tired of all this. I'm tired of being the medical weirdo and doctors never having the answers. I don't expect them to be gods or have all the answers. I know no two human bodies are alike, but dammit, why does mine have to be so nontypical and screwed up?
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high platelet count
- By Woeful
- Posted July 1, 2009 at 11:59 am · 4 replies
- In Home IV feeding (HPN, parenteral nutrition)
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- By Novagrad
- Posted July 2, 2009 at 7:50 pm
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Usually, a jump in platelets is reactionary. Meaning it is reacting to something that is acutely going on. Whether it's inflammation or an infection or something new going on. So don't be too concerned about the platelets themselves, but think of other new things that might be happening.
Mimi
- By Woeful
- Posted July 3, 2009 at 1:37 pm
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Mimi,
What I can't figure out (and apparently neither can my doctor) is why my platelet count (which has to do with your blood clotting properly) is so high, yet so is my PT (which has to do with your blood being thin enough so that it doesn't clot). So apparently my blood is getting too thin (and why they reduced my coumadin intake), which should make me less prone to blood clotting, but yet my platelet count, which can lead to blood clots, is now too high. I'm just scared to death, since a blood clot is what ruined my life. And there's no answer on why my phosphorus levels are suddenly too high (I don't get any phosphorus through my TPN). My doctor was concerned enough that he requested STAT lab work on me yesterday (because of today being the holiday). So my home health nurse shows up at 8:30 yesterday morning. She left my house to go directly to the lab. Then my doctor's office calls me at 3:00 yesterday to tell me Neighborcare (my home health service/pharmacy that draws up my TPN bags) won't have my lab results until after 5 pm. WHAT?? What about "STAT" wasn't clear to them? My doctor was furious, but there's nothing he can do about it. So now I'll spend until Monday worrying about the results of my labs and scared I'm going to spring a new blood clot.
- By Novagrad
- Posted July 3, 2009 at 7:39 pm
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Aren't you on coumadin? I would not worry too much about the high platelets if your PT is therapeutically high. Like I said, a high platelet count may be reactionary to something else that is going on. It does not always indicate a clot formation somewhere. Just make sure you don't have an infection anywhere or unusual inflammation. Maybe your crohn's is acting up and that is causing the platelets to increase.
Mimi
- By Woeful
- Posted July 5, 2009 at 6:26 pm
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Mimi,
That would be just my luck, that I have Crohn's in the very minute bit of intestine I have left. Although after my surgery, I distinctly remember my doctor saying I no longer have Crohn's. Maybe that's a diagnostic issue? I notice on all my forms, where before it always read Crohn's disease, not it just says short bowel syndrome. I know you can get Crohn's anywhere in your digestive tract, from mouth to anus, so it's possible. However, all those years of living with the Crohn's, even during my worst flareups, I don't ever recall having a high platelet count or high white blood cell count. That's what drove my doctor nuts so regularly -- I'd be in a full-out flare but my blood work would never show it.
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