Highlights
- •Thrombocytosis was found in ~8% of 421 patients admitted with acute infections.
- •Thrombocytosis was positively correlated with acute-phase reactants (ESR, CRP).
- •Patients with reactive thrombocytosis had more bacteremias and longer hospital stay.
- •Patients had more suppurative complications/mortality affecting a minority (12.5%).
- •Thrombocytosis was often mild, present on admission, and always transient.
Abstract
Background
Reactive thrombocytosis is known to occur in infectious, inflammatory and neoplastic
diseases. However, the characteristics of its association with acute infections (ID)
has not been systematically studied.
Setting
A department of internal medicine in a general teaching hospital.
Methods
Retrospective chart review of admitted patients with a confirmed diagnosis of community-acquired
pneumonia (CAP), urinary tract infection (UTI) or skin and soft tissue infection (SSTI).
Key clinical and laboratory data were retrieved and patients with platelet counts
>400 × 109/L who had no alternative cause of thrombocytosis were studied longitudinally and
compared to patients with acute infections who had no thrombocytosis.
Results
Thirty two of 421 patients with acute infections (ID) had infection-associated thrombocytosis
(7.6%): 11/125 patients with CAP (8.8%), 13/205 patients with UTI (6.3%) and 8/91
(8.8%) patients with SSTI. Their median ages (77–78 years), gender (48% males), admission
temperature, Hb, and WBC were not significantly different from ID patients without
thrombocytosis. However, patients with thrombocytosis had longer hospital stays (P = 0.001),
more bacteremias (P = 0.048) and in 4/32 (12/5% vs. 2%) significantly increased combined
mortality or suppurative complications (P = 0.0006). The ESR (median 70 vs. 40 mm/h,
P = 0.000) and CRP (median 214 vs. 114 mg/dL, P < 0.0001) were found to be increased
in ID-associated thrombocytosis patients, similarly for each ID. Platelets increase
was already found on admission in 18 patients (56%), was mild in most cases (median
492.5 × 109/L, range 401–917 × 109/L) and resolved after recovery in all survivors. The median time to thrombocytosis
was 1 day in patients with CAP, 4 days in UTI and 7.5 days in SSTI. No thrombotic
complications were found.
Conclusions
Approximately 8% of patients with acute ID examined had thrombocytosis which was mostly
mild, transient, and not usually indicative of an infectious complication. However,
these patients had enhanced acute-phase response, increased length of hospital stay,
more bacteremia and increased mortality/suppurative complications albeit affecting
a minority of patients.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 19, 2019
Accepted:
February 14,
2019
Received in revised form:
February 12,
2019
Received:
December 18,
2018
Identification
Copyright
© 2019 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of European Federation of Internal Medicine.
