Elevated Platelet Tests Associated with Severe Heart Disease Risks

As a major component of the blood-vascular axis responsible for preventing hemorrhage, platelets (PLT) are crucial in the development of ischemic stroke due to its participation in thromboemboli that may initiate the symptoms of stroke.

Mean platelet volume (MPV) and PLT count are the two major parameters that reflect the functions and activities of PLTs. MPV, which describes the mean volume (size) of platelets, is an indicator that represents megakaryocytic hyperplasia and metabolism, and platelet production in bone marrow, and indicates the age of circulating platelets.

Scientists at Sichuan University (Chengdu, China) studied 281 first-time ischemic stroke and 164 first-time hemorrhagic stroke patients between 2010 and 2012. All participants received routine blood tests within two hours after admission and were categorized into good or poor prognosis group based on the Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score. MPV and PLT count were measured within 30 minutes after venipuncture with a Sysmex XS-2000i autoanalyzer (Sysmex Corporation; Kobe, Japan).

The investigators found that the risk of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke in MPV group of greater than 13 fL was 22.17 and 5.21 times higher compared with normal MPV group (9.4–12.5 fL). The PLT count was positively correlated with the risk of ischemic stroke, but negatively correlated with the risk of hemorrhagic stroke. MPV and PLT count was not correlated with the prognosis of either stroke. The findings showed that a decline in MPV reduced the risk of ischemic stroke whereas an elevated MPV increased the risk of ischemic stroke.

The authors concluded that increased MPV is an independent risk factor for both strokes. Elevated PLT count increases the risk for ischemic stroke, but decreases the risk for hemorrhagic stroke. However, neither MPV nor PLT count has significant association with the prognosis of either stroke. The study was published on March 19, 2016, in the International Journal of Laboratory Hematology.

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