Description
Low platelet count; Signs of severe thrombocytopenia include petechiae, ecchymoses at sites of minor trauma, and mucosal bleeding. [Merck Manual, p. 1198] Acute thrombocytopenia, but not chronic thrombocytopenia, is associated with sepsis and is short-lived. Drugs are the most common cause of thrombocytopenia in the hospital. Infections associated with thrombocytopenia include measles, rubella, dengue, hemorrhagic fevers, EBV, CMV, varicella, mumps, HIV, TSS, trypanosomiasis, malaria, ehrlichiosis, typhus, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. [ID, p. 160]