Medical expert of the article
New publications
Platelets
Last reviewed: 06.07.2025
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Reference values (norm) for platelet count (PLT) in the blood: newborns 1-10 days old - 99-421×10 9 /l; older than 10 days and adults - 180-320×10 9 /l.
Platelets are a formed element of the blood with a diameter of 2-4 microns, representing a “fragment” of the cytoplasm of bone marrow megakaryocytes.
The lifespan of platelets is 7-10 days. Physiological fluctuations in the number of platelets in the blood during the day are up to 10%. In women, the number of platelets during menstruation can decrease by 25-50%.
Platelets perform angiotrophic, adhesive-aggregation functions, participate in the processes of blood coagulation and fibrinolysis, and ensure the retraction of the blood clot. They are capable of carrying circulating immune complexes (CIC) on their membrane and maintaining vascular spasm. In 80-85% of patients with hemorrhagic diathesis, disorders in the hemostasis system are caused by a decrease in the number or a decrease in the functional activity of platelets.
[ Who to contact?
Mean platelet volume
Reference values for mean platelet volume (MPV) are 3.6–9.4 µm 3.
Modern hematological analyzers draw thrombocytometric curves (histograms of platelet distribution by volume). The relationship between the size of platelets and their functional activity, the content of biologically active substances in platelet granules, the tendency of cells to adhesion, and changes in the volume of platelets before aggregation is noted. The presence of predominantly young forms of platelets in the blood leads to a shift in the histogram to the right, old cells are located in the histogram on the left. Consequently, as platelets age, their volume decreases.