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1654058 tn?1407159066

Post tx platelets

How long does it take for platelets to get back to normal? Mine dropped as low as 20's and bottomed after bleedout. But have climbed to 67 on their own! I"m still carrying bruises that are 6 mos old. Some from Procrit inj on thigh. Anyone have experience post tx with blood levels.
ALT/AST are in low 30's. NIce.  
HGB is 13.4. Woohoo!
And drumroll please.... UND at 3 mos. yes. yes. yes. yes. yes.
Karen :)
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264121 tn?1313029456
Interestingly, my platelets, which weren't hugely problematic during tx, have not really been doing great things in the past three years or so since I reached SVR.  In fact, I am now slightly hypocellular in my bone marrow altogher, which had not shown up in bone marrow biopsies prior to tx (I have chronic anemia, and frequently my wbc and platelet counts are lower as well).  At any rate, I don't know if perhaps there is potential for a bit of a cytotoxic element for some people when exposed to tx drugs?  I do have some peripheral neuropathy and sensorineural damage since tx (although not enough to complain about - seriously).

I WAS certainly on a good deal of supportive medication during tx as well, so there could have also been more at play than just the tx drugs in terms of pos. medication toxicity.  And then there are genetics - so the picture just becomes so complex that the etiology of certain things is truly impossible to nail down as far as I'm concerned.
Helpful - 0
1652596 tn?1342011626
karen, so good to hear about your UND news.  i get my 12 week labs done in 2 weeks.  best wishes.  belle
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Avatar universal
mine were around 100 when i started tx, dropped to about 50,000 on treatment and now after dose reductions and at week 44 are around 80,000.  i recall goofydad recounting that he asked his doc why his platelets did not return to normal after SVR.  his doc said that sometimes even after installing a shiny new liver in a patient their platelets do not return to normal range.
eric
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446474 tn?1446347682
Quotes on bruising experinces:

"I have low platelet count usually between 60-70 for last 12-18mths. It was 60 last bloods. When I exited ICU following a coma my arms (particularly the right) were one big bruise from inside the wrist up to the inner elbow - it took approx 6 weeks to largely resolve."

"When my ex-husband was hospitalized this last time when he was comatose from high ammonia levels his platelets were between 30,000-35,000. His bruising was horrendous afterwards from all the IV's and blood draws. It took a few weeks for them to clear-up."

"I can only relate my experience and other's close to me. The answer is a clear and definitive, it depends. ;-)

Bruises caused by contact ( the type we think as a "normal" bruise) can take several days to weeks. Bruises due to surgery or procedures that are invasive can take weeks to over a month.

"A friend who was recently transplanted really looked beat up with bruises prior to transplant. Post transplant they looked astonishingly good within days on legs and arms for example. The areas from the surgery however took longer. In this case many units of blood were used during transplant (over 12) so the body was jump started rather than trying to catch up."

PT (INR) test

"The PT (prothrombin time) test measures how quickly your blood clots, which is dependent on clotting factors (proteins) that are made by the liver. The PT test is used as a marker of advanced liver disease and can indicate blood-clotting problems where it takes you longer to stop bleeding.
Your laboratory may also give PT results that have been converted to an internationally recognized and easily comparable value that's called the International Normalized Ratio (INR). The INR is one of the three factors used to determine wait time for a liver transplant."

For my lab PT of 15.5 is the top of the range. I tend to average around 16-17.
For INR 1.2 the the top of the range. I average 1.3.
Which explain why I have little bruising or bleeding issues. I am close to normal range.

"overwhelming smart" Flattery work for me!

Cool yesterday was the warmest day we have had in a long time. I think it was 72 degrees here in the city. So hot I thought I was gonna faint. haha

Hector
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2114467 tn?1358210256
Cheers to UND!!!
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1654058 tn?1407159066
Thanks all. We've all paid our dues. That's for sure. Aren't we amazingly resilient? Love to all.
I'm taking vit K. I even break the caplets and mix the powder w arnica gel and apply topically. I keep it in an old contact lense case. Maybe this info will help somebody. That does help lesson the time the bruise lasts. Except for where Procrit shots were.. hmmm.
I guess it's another case of "we're all different" because platelets were in the 120's before tx. They really dumped. I've added more spinach. And YES I stir fry a lot w/ peanut oil and also eat peanut butter every day. It's been my staple for years. Streamline - good to hear somebody is in the same ball park. Not that it's life threatening any more. I used to have labs weekly. lol. We all remember those days.
Hector.... what is PT/INL? Once again you've given overwhelming smart info. haha. That lactulose must work great cause you have amazing memory.
Trying to stay cool, Karen :)
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446474 tn?1446347682
Karen, I asked a number of transplant patients about their experiences with bruising due to very low platelet counts and they said it only took a number of weeks to about a month for the skin to clear up from bruising.

Perhaps you might want to ask your doctor about the bruising and if there is something you can do about it. Maybe vitamin K or something since your platelet count is now good and higher then mine for the past 5 years! In the 50,000 - 60,000s you should have no bruising. I never have.

Congrats on undetectable!!! Very awesome! You have paid your dues and then some. That's for sure.

Hector
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223152 tn?1346978371
crossroads.  I don't know the answer either.  There is a lot I need to learn post tx.  My platelets got as low as 145 but that is all.  They were, overall, a lot lower than last tx.

I hope your brusing goes away.  Does vitamin E topically help?
frijole
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979080 tn?1323433639
Congrats to your SVR12 !
Platelets are being produced by the bone marrow and the tx meds mess
with your bone marrow. In my case the platelets were pushed up by Riba
and knocked down by INF so that during my 60wk tx they stayed at about
the same as pre tx. Once I stopped tx they dropped by about 100 points and have since very slowly been coming back. After 1 year post tx still slightly lower than pre tx. I don`t have cirrhosis and my spleen is fine so it is
the bone marrow production effecting my counts. It does not effect
me in any way since all my counts are in normal range , just saying how
individually different it can be.

b
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Avatar universal
My platelets are at 67 as of my six month post blood work. My doctor said over the next four years as my liver repairs itself my spleen should go down and my platelets will go up. I think 67 sounds good for you 3 months out. I was still in the 50's 4 month out. Congratulations on your UND@ 3 months
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1669790 tn?1333662595
Ahhhhh Karen, I'm thrilled to hear you're UND @ 3 months.  Such good news.  The other numbers lookin good too.  So happy for you.  I don't know nuttin about platelets, so can't add to the good advice above.  Hope your last banding went well.  Take care.  
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789911 tn?1368636783
Great to hear your good news on 3 mo. post UND!  Hoping that your platelet count  gets back to the highest level they can SOON!  
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163305 tn?1333668571
Wonderful, wonderful news ! UND !
I admire you, despite having a rough go you've  always stayed upbeat.

Hugs from afar,
OH
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446474 tn?1446347682
Karen,

Your platelet count is now 67,000?
What was your platelet count before you started treatment?
How is your PT/INR levels?
I think everyone is different as to how long and how high they will get. Remember your enlarge spleen is still sequestering them and will as long as you have portal hypertension. But maybe you can get back up to close to the platelet count where you started from before treatment.

Remember platelets only clot blood they don't affect how you feel. Can you put makeup on your bruises to cover them for now? I'l' see if I can get any info on bruising and how long that hangs around cause every one post transplant is pretty bruised up for a while also but then their skin clears up.

Ciao.
Hector
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Avatar universal
  Whew-hooo, congrats on 3 month Und, this is great news!
  All those #'s look good to me!  I had low platelets prior to Tx, they suddenly dropped out of normal range, and down to 120,000.  They have stayed at about 90,000, while I have been on Triple Tx.
   I did do some research prior to Tx, to see if any foods were good at building platelets, and what I came up with, was peanut-oil. I think, because of it's very high vitamin E content. And getting our vitamins via ood intake, is much more sae, then vitamins.
   I did go out and buy a bottle of peanut-oil, but then I started Tx,  and I have an aversion to it. But if you enjoy cooking, you could whip up some Thai-recipes, and saute yr veggies in the peanut-oil, it couldn't hurt :)
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Avatar universal
Not sure what they were pre treatment but being cirrhotic that might be as good as they get. Mine has neve got above 80 and i am over 2 years out.

Congrats on what looks like your SVR, happy to see yet another cirrhotic beat the odds.
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