Thrombocytopenia (Low Platelet Count) Glossary of Terms

1. Take the Blood Disorders Quiz

Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Acetaminophen: A nonaspirin pain reliever or analgesic. Acetaminophen may be given alone t...

Acquired: Not inherited, or present at birth (congenital), but developing after birth. For...

Acute: Of abrupt onset, in reference to a disease. Acute often also connotes an illness th...

Agranulocytosis: A marked decrease in the number of granulocytes. Granulocytes are a type...

Alcohol abuse: Use of alcoholic beverages to excess, either on individual occasions (binge...

Anemia: The condition of having a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells or quantity ...

Aplastic anemia: Anemia due to failure of the bone marrow to produce red and white blood c...

Artificial heart: A human-made heart. An artificial heart is a mechanical pump that is use...

Autoimmune: Pertaining to autoimmunity, a misdirected immune response that occurs when the...

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

Biopsy: The removal of a sample of tissue for examination under a microscope to check for ...

Blood clot: A mass of coagulated blood. A blood clot can block a major blood vessel, causi...

Blood count: The calculated number of white or red blood cells (WBCs or RBCs) in a cubic m...

Bone marrow: The soft blood-forming tissue that fills the cavities of bones and contains f...

Bone marrow biopsy: The removal of a sample of bone marrow and a small amount of bone thro...

Cancer: An abnormal growth of cells which tend to proliferate in an uncontrolled way and, ...

CBC: A commonly used abbreviation in medicine that stands for complete blood count, a set...

Cell: The basic structural and functional unit of any living thing. Each cell is a small c...

Chemotherapy: 1. In the original sense, a chemical that binds to and specifically k...

Chickenpox: A highly infectious viral disease also known medically as varicella -- in many...

Chronic: In medicine, lasting a long time. A chronic condition is one that lasts 3 months ...

Circulation: In medicine, the movement of fluid through the body in a regular or circuitou...

Cirrhosis: Liver disease characterized by irreversible scarring. Alcohol and viral hepatit...

Coagulation: In medicine, the clotting of blood. The process by which the blood clots to f...

Complete blood count: A set values of the cellular (formed elements) of blood. These meas...

Complication: In medicine, an unanticipated problem that arises following, and is a result...

Congenital: A condition that is present at birth, whether or not it is inherited.

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

Diarrhea: A common condition that involves unusually frequent and liquid bowel movements. ...

EBV: Epstein-Barr virus.

Enlarged spleen: Splenomegaly, or an enlargement of the spleen. This condition can occur w...

Enoxaparin: A low-molecular-weight version of heparin that acts like heparin as an anticoa...

Enzymes: Proteins that act as a catalysts in mediating and speeding a specific chemical re...

Epstein-Barr virus: A virus in the herpes family that is best known as the cause of infect...

Escherichia coli: Full term for E. coli, the colon bacillus.

Essential: In medicine, of unknown cause, as in essential hypertension (high blood pressur...

Fever: Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 degr...

Genetic: Having to do with genes and genetic
information.

Heart: The muscle that pumps blood received from veins into arteries throughout the body. ...

Hemoglobin: The oxygen-carrying pigment and predominant protein in the red blood cells. He...

Hemolytic: Referring to hemolysis, the destruction of red blood cells which leads to the r...

Hemolytic anemia: Anemia due to the destruction, rather than underproduction, of red blood...

Hemolytic uremic syndrome: A condition characterized by the breakup of red blood cells (he...

Heparin: An anticoagulant (anti-clotting) medication. Heparin is useful in preventing thro...

Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia: Low blood platelet count as a result of the medication h...

Hepatitis: Inflammation of the liver, irrespective of the cause. Hepatitis is caused by a ...

Hepatitis C: Inflammation of the liver due to the hepatitis C virus (HCV), which is usuall...

HIV: Acronym for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, the cause of AIDS (acquired immunodefi...

Idiopathic: Of unknown cause. Any disease that is of uncertain or unknown origin may be te...

Immune: Protected against infection, usually by the presence of antibodies.

Immune system: A complex system that is responsible for distinguishing a person from every...

Immunoglobulin: A protein produced by plasma cells and lymphocytes and characteristic of t...

Internal medicine: The medical specialty dedicated to the diagnosis and medical treatment ...

ITP: Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. A condition characterized by the sudden, abnorma...

Kidney: One of a pair of organs located in the right and left side of the abdomen. The kid...

Laboratory: A place for doing tests and research procedures, and for preparing chemicals a...

Leukemia: Cancer of the blood cells. Strictly speaking, leukemia should refer only to canc...

Leukopenia: A shortage of white blood cells.

Liter: A metric measure of capacity that is equal to the volume of 1 kilogram of water at ...

Liver: The largest solid organ in the body, situated in the upper part of the abdomen on t...

Low platelets: see thrombocytopenia.

Lupus: A chronic inflammatory disease that is caused by autoimmunity. Patients with lupus ...

Lymphoma: A tumor of the lymphoid tissue. The major types of lymphoma are Hodgkin's diseas...

Marrow: The bone marrow.

Medical history: 1. In clinical medicine, the patient's past and present which may ...

Microscope: An optical instrument that augments the power of the eye to see small objects....

MPH: Master of public health, a degree designating successful training in analyzing past, ...

Mumps: An acute (sudden, shortlived) viral illness that usually presents with inflammation...

Neonatal: Pertaining to the newborn period, specifically the first 4 weeks after birth.

Normal range: Characteristic of 95 percent of values from a normal population. The remaini...

Petechiae: Pinpoint flat round red spots under the skin surface caused by intradermal hemo...

Plasma: The liquid part of the blood and lymphatic fluid, which makes up about half of the...

Plasmapheresis: A procedure in which whole blood is taken from a person and separated into...

Platelet: An irregular, disc-shaped element in the blood that assists in blood clotting....

Platelet count: The calculated number of platelets in a volume of blood, usually expressed...

Pregnancy: The state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body. Thi...

Pregnant: The state of carrying a developing fetus within the body.

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Purpura: Hemorrhage (bleeding) into the surface of the skin. The area of skin with purpura...

Quinine: The original antimalarial agent, quinine took its name from the Peruvian Indian w...

Radiation: 1. Rays of energy. Gamma rays and X-rays are two of the types of energy ...

Rash: Breaking out (eruption) of the skin. A rash can be caused by an underlying medical c...

Red blood cell: The blood cell that carries oxygen. Red cells contain hemoglobin and it is...

Red blood cells: The blood cells that carry oxygen. Red cells contain hemoglobin and it is...

Red cell count: The number of red blood cells (RBCs) in a volume of blood. The normal ran...

Red cells: Short for red blood cells, the oxygen/carbon dioxide carrying cells in blood. A...

Rupture: A break or tear in any organ (such as the spleen) or soft tissue (such as the ach...

Sepsis: The presence of bacteria (bacteremia), other infectious organisms, or toxins creat...

Spleen: An organ that is located in the upper-left part of the abdomen, not far from the s...

Splenectomy: An operation to remove the spleen.

Splenomegaly: Abnormal enlargement of the spleen. Splenomegaly is a sign of an underlying ...

Surgery: The branch of medicine that employs operations in the treatment of disease or inj...

Syndrome: A combination of symptoms and signs that together represent a disease process.

Systemic: Affecting the entire body. A systemic disease such as diabetes can affect the wh...

Thrombocyte: A platelet. Crucial to normal blood clotting. Although platelets are sometime...

Thrombocytopenia: : A low platelet count. Platelets are irregular, disc-shaped element in ...

Thrombocytosis: See thrombocythemia.

Toxicity: The degree to which a substance (a toxin or poison) can harm humans or animals. ...

Transfusion: The transfer of blood or blood products from one person (the donor) into the ...

Vasculitis: A general term for a group of uncommon diseases that feature inflammation of t...

Vessel: A tube in the body that carries fluids. Examples of vessels are blood vessels and ...

Viral: Of or pertaining to a virus. For example, if a person has a viral rash, the rash wa...

Virus: A microorganism that is smaller than a bacterium that cannot grow or reproduce apar...

Vitamin B12: A vitamin important for the normal formation of red blood cells and the healt...

White blood cell: One of the cells the body makes to help fight infections. There are seve...