Anyone familiar with ITP (Idopathic Thrombocytopenia Popura)?

I recently found out more about something that was a fleeting memory. When I was very very little, my mother was hospitalized briefly. She's always called what she had "petichea" and there was three letters she'd say.. she said it was a platelet problem.. Well, I recently researched and found out she had IPT (the three letters) which is Idiopathic thrombocytopenia popura. She had many petichial dots, where her blood would literally pass through the blood vessels and into the skin.

My question is: What do you know about this. Should I be concerned about having this in my medical history? Is it unusual that my mother had one "attack" (for lack of a better term) badly enough to put her in the hospital, but she's been seemingly fine since? Should she be concerned? Should I not donate blood? (I have recently started donating on a regular basis). Should I be tested for anything (platelet count)?

One time a few months ago I got very sick (food poisoning) and was vomiting alot.. the next morning I had petichial dots around my eyes.. I told my mom and she was super concerned, convinced it was the same thing she had been hospitalized for. She blamed it on my giving blood that day (she's weird about blood donating.. I think she's stuck in the early 80's where AIds is a big scare)

Also, mom's father died of blood clots, and her brother is on thinners because he's getting them too.. I think it's interesting that both mom's problems and the men's problems are clotting issues....

Mom does seem to bruise easily, which could possibly be related..

I have ITP and had an "attack" nearly 6 years ago which landed me in the hospital. I was bruising very heavily (from minor bumps) and had massive feminine bleeding. It was horrible. I put off going to the Dr as I didn't have insurance at the time. I'm going to be slightly graphic here, but I finally went to the Dr after I couldn't make it through my work day without having to run to the restroom every half hour because of the bleeding...Yes, it was that bad. I too had petichae, but it was mostly on my legs and stomach. Anyway, I went to the Dr on a Friday afternoon, and by Saturday afternoon, I was in the hospital. My platelet level on Fri was at 3k, and by Sat it was at only 1k (normal is about 150k).

I don't think that ITP itself is hereditary (neither of my parents have blood issues). I have found that during pregnancy, my platelet levels go down into the 60-80k range, while my normal is about 90k (still lower than normal, but I'm ok). I did see a hematologist during my pregnancies in order to keep a good eye on my blood issues. He ran all sorts of tests and found that while I have low platelets, I am at high risk of clotting. I took injectable blood thinners (Lovenox) during both pregnancies...and I have been warned against taking hormonal birth control, as they all carry risk of clotting....so if I were you, I'd probably check your risk for clots by having whatever testing they do now.

As for giving blood, I still do it when I have time. Never have I been turned away from giving blood because of my ITP.

There is some new research on this disorder and it has been found to be autoimmune. So please go to http://www.cidpusa.org and read the story number 22 that will help answer all your questions.about ITP

It's ITP, Ideopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, a condition where the blood platelets decrease in number and function poorly. It often follows a viral illness, but its cause is not definitely known, hence the term "ideopathic." Platelets are necessary for blood to clot, and their absence can result in splinter hemorrhages, easy bruising or even internal bleeding. Most often the disease is acute and resolves after several weeks, sometimes longer. Occasionally, however, a person has chronic ITP and the condition persists or the patient experiences periods of remissions and exacerbations.

The little splinter hemorrhages are called petechiae (puh-TEEK-ee-eye). They are not unique to ITP but can be seen on the face and neck after hard vomiting. Petechiae below the nipples are usually the result of more serious disorders.

More and more doctors are concerned about the significance of family history in bleeding disorders, especially the tendency to develop blood clots. It may be due to a hereditary deficiency of Factor V leiden, or deficiencies of Protein C or S. Your doctor should be aware of your family history.