Low Platelet Count

Phil2440 said:

The new concern is my Platelet count which is 130 against an acceptable range of 140-400. It was 128 last time but they didn't choose to mention it! I don't have a family history of Haemophilia so this is a worry.
Has anyone come across a diabetes related cause for this sort of thing?

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I tried to donate blood a few weeks ago and was told I couldn't because I was type 1 diabetic and on insulin, so I rang the National Blood Service to ask why I couldn't donate, they said it was because the platelet count would be too low. So it would be a lot of work to separate out all the blood and get it all at the right concentration etc, more blood from me would be required than from someone else to get the same amount of 'useful' blood.

I'm not sure what causes the low platelet count, if it is the insulin or having type 1 diabetes, and I don't know if it happens with type 2. This is the reason for the slow wound healing you get with diabetes, says the diabetes nurse at the hospital.

So I'd assume it's normal for diabetes, but ask the nurse anyway if you are worried?

I am a Biomedical Scientist specialising in haematology/blood transfusion science and also have Type 1 diabetes (on Animas 2020 since January 2010). The normal range for the platelet count is usually taken as 150-400 in the UK, but may differ elsewhere,eg. in the US it is 120-400. In fact it varies widely in healthy individuals, often dropping to as low as 100, or less, during viral infections, then returning to normal, without causing any symptoms. Many people habitually have a count of 100-150 and are perfectly healthy.

Symptoms of a dangerously low platelet count are; unexplained bruising, nose bleeds and bleeding from other orifices,and prolonged heavy periods, but this only occurs when the count drops well below 50. Normally, a platelet transfusion wouldn't be given until it reaches 20. A very low count is dangerous due to the risk of internal haemorrhage, especially in the brain. This mainly occurs in cancer patients on chemotherapy, who are carefully monitored with regular blood tests. There is also a rare autoimmune condition called ITP, in which platelets are destroyed by antibodies and may reach dangerously low levels. I have never come across a person with ITP who also had Type 1 diabetes, and I have never found any association between diabetes and low platelet counts.

The National Blood Service will not accept Type 1 diabetics as blood donors due to the presence of unknown amounts of injected insulin in the unit of blood, which might pose a risk to the recipient. Also, the donor may be at risk of a hypo after giving blood. In my dealings with the National Blood Service I have never been aware of the platelet count being of any concern in diabetics.
The slower rate of wound healing in some diabetics is not caused by a low platelet count. There are many other factors involved.

Haemophilia has nothing to do with platelets, it is caused by Factor 8 deficiency.
I hope this helps to clear up some worries.