Platelets
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Reference values (norm) of platelet count (PLT) in the blood: newborns 1-10 days - 99-421 × 10 9 / l; older than 10 days and adults - 180-320 × 10 9 / liter.
Platelets are a blood element with a diameter of 2-4 microns, which is a "fragment" of the cytoplasm of the megakaryocytes of the bone marrow.
The life span 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 during menstruation, the number of platelets may decrease by 25-50%.
Platelets perform angiotrophic, adhesive-aggregation functions, participate in the processes of blood clotting and fibrinolysis, provide retraction of the blood clot. They are able to carry circulating immune complexes (CIC) on their membranes, to maintain vasospasm. In 80-85% of patients with hemorrhagic diathesis, disorders in the hemostasis system are caused by a decrease in the amount or a decrease in the functional activity of platelets.
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Average platelet volume
The reference values of the average platelet volume (MPV, mean platelet volume) are 3.6-9.4 μm 3.
Modern hematological analyzers draw thrombocytometric curves (histograms of platelet distribution by volume). There is a correlation between the size of platelets and their functional activity, the content of biologically active substances in the granules of platelets, the tendency of the cells to adhesion, and the changes in platelet volume before aggregation. The presence in the blood of predominantly young forms of platelets leads to a shift of the histogram to the right, the old cells are located in the histogram on the left. Consequently, as the platelets age, their volume decreases.