Vol. 2 Issue 1 Part F

Platelets are the prime movers in the clotting system. They are consumed in large numbers at every episode of clotting. Quantitative assessment is an important parameter in the study of coagulation. Platelets have proved more difficult to count than either red cells or white cells. It is well known that platelet count is a critical parameter in management of thrombocytopenia. Several factors are known to cause bleeding in association with infections, of which thrombocytopenia is the most common. Assessment of platelet count in routine haematology is essential, as numerical deficiency (usually below 150,000/μl) or defect in their function may lead to bleeding. Thrombocytopenia should also be confirmed by inspection of the stained blood film. Accurate and precise enumeration of platelets assists not only in diagnosis and treatment of various clinical disorders but also for standardizing counts with whole blood, platelet rich plasma or purified platelet preparations, used in therapy. Data will comprise of geriatric cases of age above 60 years from Outpatient Department (OPD) & In Patient Department (IPD) with low platelet count(less than 150 × 109/L) on fully automated 5 part differential haematology analyser, Simens Advia 120. The EDTA blood sample from each case is processed in automated. Thrombocytopenia is a commonly observed haematological entity in geriatric age group. The causes for thrombocytopenia are varied and range from idiopathic infections to malignancies. Infections like Dengue, Malaria, are some of the common causes of fever with thrombocytopenia.