Doctors say low platelet count no cause for worry

NEW DELHI: Low blood platelet count may not necessarily mean dengue or at least may not be a reason to panic. Doctors and health officials advise people to drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration and maintain good sanitation to avoid dengue. Doctors say patients should take paracetamol in case of fever and closely keep a watch on symptoms like blood pressure, rise in pulse rate and if PCV blood count goes beyond 50.

According to experts, rapidly falling platelets may trigger plasma leakage which needs monitoring but merely low platelet count --up to 8000-9000-- may not be serious or a threat to life. However, doctors say once platelets are below the 10,000 level, it is safer to go for medical fluid intake –either orally or IV fluid.

“Platelet counts are not reliable and do not indicate anything. In other words, platelet deficiency is not alarming, neither can platelet transfusion save anyone’s life,” said Dr K K Aggarwal, secretary general, Indian Medical Association.

Dr SP Byotra, chairman (internal medicines) at Ganga Ram Hospital, also maintains falling platelet count and fever could be symptoms for other diseases like malaria, typhoid and kala azar. Though these symptoms are present even in case of dengue, but patients need not panic and instead should go for proper investigation of the disease, he said. Doctors say if persistent high fever is coupled with bleeding, vomiting, nausea and dehydration, one should investigate for dengue.

According to Dr Aggarwal, there is nothing to worry if a patient is passing urine every three hours. He said a patient persistently running high fever, feeling extreme weakness and with rapidly falling platelets should keep a close watch on blood pressure and whether the pulse rate is shooting up and if PCV blood count is over 50.

Officials in the health ministry also advised patients not to seek hospital admission out of panic in case of high fever and falling platelet count.

“Other viral infections are on and fever could be a result of that. Hospitalization is not required in each and every case,” said a senior official.

Maintaining that there is no shortage of beds, the official attributed it to patients seeking admission in panic.

Officials said patients should avoid easily available rapid diagnostic kits for testing dengue as these kits have low sensitivity and therefore often produce false results.