In about two thirds of the individuals, the disease does not cause any symptoms and is diagnosed incidentally on routine blood tests. In patients with symptomatic disease the signs and symptoms vary among different individuals. The most common manifestations are abnormal bleeding or thrombosis.

Bleeding tendency may manifest in the form of:

• Bleeding from respiratory tract.
• Bleeding from gastrointestinal tract.
• Bleeding from urinary tract.
• Bleeding from gums.
• Epistaxis.
• Early bruising.

Thrombi may form anywhere in the body including the heart and intestine, thus compromising their blood supply. Thrombosis occurring in small vessels mainly causes numbness and abnormal burning sensations of hands and feet [5] [6].

Other signs and symptoms of clotting include:

• Changes in speech and orientation causing confusion.
• Seizures.
• Shortness of breath.
• Nausea.
• Discomfort in arms, legs, back, neck, jaw or abdomen.

In high risk cases clotting in the brain may result in stroke. In pregnant females, blood clots in the placenta may cause problems in the fetal growth and development or may lead to termination of pregnancy. All the females with essential thrombocythemia who use oral contraceptive pills are at a higher risk of developing thrombosis.

• Easy Bruising

  About one-third of patients with ET will demonstrate no symptoms at all, but many will experience easy bruising or bleeding with little or no injury. [uihc.org]

  bruising and nosebleeds Bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory system, urinary tract, or skin Bleeding from the gums Prolonged bleeding from surgical procedures or tooth removal Most of the time, ET is found through blood tests done for [nlm.nih.gov]

  Symptoms include dizziness, easy bruising, headache, bloody stools, numbness of the hands or feet, ulcers on the toes or fingers, nosebleeds, prolonged bleeding after surgery or tooth removal, and bleeding from the gums, gastrointestinal and/or urinary [amarillo.com]

  Blood vessel disturbances or bleeding can result in: Headache Vision disturbances or silent migraines Dizziness or lightheadedness Coldness or blueness of fingers or toes Burning, redness, and pain in the hands and feet Easy bruising, nosebleeds or heavy [hopkinsmedicine.org]

• Splenomegaly

  DISEASE OVERVIEW: Polycythemia Vera (PV) and essential thrombocythemia (ET) are myeloproliferative neoplasms respectively characterized by erythrocytosis and thrombocytosis; other disease features include leukocytosis, splenomegaly, thrombosis, bleeding [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  […] erythroid hyperplasia, atypical megas Panmyelosis, atypical tightly clustered megas Megas Erythroid dysplasia, ring sideroblasts, megas Erythroid hypoplasia, small megas Marrow Fibrosis Varies in spent phase in fibrotic phase Minimal Varies Minimal Splenomegaly [surgpathcriteria.stanford.edu]

• Pain

  An 82-year-old woman who had a history of essential thrombocythemia presented with ocular pain, bleeding, and decreased visual acuity of the left eye. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  The heart A blood clot in the heart may cause chest pain, and in severe cases can result in a heart attack. The lungs A blood clot in the lung may cause breathlessness and chest pain. This is known as a pulmonary embolism. [web.archive.org]

• Weakness

  Symptoms and signs may include weakness, headaches, paresthesias, bleeding, splenomegaly, and erythromelalgia with digital ischemia. [msdmanuals.com]

  Primary hemostasis: formation of weak, temporary platelet plug (by platelets). 2. Secondary hemostasis: formation of stronger fibrin meshwork (by coagulation factors). [youtube.com]

  Resources - Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia (Essential Thrombocythemia) Call your health care provider: * If unexplained or prolonged bleeding occurs * If chest pain, leg pain, confusion, weakness, numbness, or other new symptoms develop [checkorphan.org]

  They include: Headache Dizziness or lightheadedness Chest pain Weakness Fainting Temporary vision changes Numbness or tingling of the hands and feet Redness, throbbing and burning pain in the hands and feet (erythromelalgia) Mildly enlarged spleen Less [medicalmarijuana.com]

  Symptoms and signs may include weakness, headaches, paresthesias, bleeding, and erythromelalgia with digital ischemia. [merckmanuals.com]

• Fever

  Only linoleic acid needs to be supplied in the diet, the other two can be made from it. (18 Nov 1997) essential fever Fever without known infectious disease. (05 Mar 2000) [kmle.co.kr]

  […] gastrointestinal (GI) tract, skin, eyes, gums or urinary tract abdominal discomfort or feeling of fullness if the spleen or liver is enlarged tingling in the hands and feet sweating itchiness slightly higher than normal temperature (called a low-grade fever [cancer.ca]

  […] patients Side effects observed in 10% of patients Contraindications Neutropenia, anemia, oral ulcers, mild gastrointestinal upset, hyperpigmentation, rash, nail changes Ankle ulcers, lichen planus-like lesions of the mouth and skin, nausea, diarrhea, Fever [slideshare.net]

  Improve Decision Making About Cancer Clinical Trials (PRE-ACT) Completed NCT00750009 Phase 3 25 A Strategic Study to Determine the Optimal Moment to Initiate Systemic Antifungal Therapy With Ambisome in Granulocytopenic Cancer Patients With Unexplained Fever [malacards.org]

• Burning Pain

  When symptoms occur, they are due to the blockage of blood vessels by blood clots and may include Redness and warmth of the hands and feet, often with burning pain (erythromelalgia) Tingling and other abnormal sensations in the fingertips, hands, and [msdmanuals.com]

  Have you experienced any redness, throbbing or burning pain in your hands or feet? Do you have a family history of high platelet counts? 1998-2019 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). All rights reserved. Terms of use [drugs.com]

  Symptoms of ET include: Headache Dizziness or light-headedness Chest pain Weakness Fainting Vision changes that eventually go away Numbness or tingling in the hands and feet Redness, throbbing, and burning pain in the hands and feet Mildly enlarged spleen [voicesofmpn.com]

  They include: Headache Dizziness or lightheadedness Chest pain Fainting Temporary vision changes Numbness or tingling of the hands and feet Redness, throbbing and burning pain in the hands and feet (erythromelalgia) Less commonly, essential thrombocythemia [mayoclinic.org]

  Erythromelalgia (burning pain in hands and feet, with warmth, erythema, and sometimes digital ischemia) may occur. Mild splenomegaly occurs in 50% of patients. Hepatomegaly may rarely occur. Myelofibrosis is common. [askhematologist.com]

• Gangrene

  If not treated with aspirin, ET and PV patients are at a high risk of major arterial thrombosis including stroke, myocardial infarction and digital gangrene. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  If left untreated, erythromelalgia usually leads to painful acrocyanosis and gangrene of one or more toes or tips of the finger[ 4 - 12 ]. [wjgnet.com]

  Microvascular occlusion of the toes and fingers causes digital pain; gangrene; or erythromelalgia, which is is characterized by burning pain and dusky extremity congestion The pain increases with exposure to heat and improves with cold; a single dose [emedicine.medscape.com]

  Aspirin in low doses can be used to control microvascular symptoms such as redness and pain in the fingers and toes, insufficient blood flow (ischemia), infections in the limbs (gangrene), strokes, syncopes, instability or visual disturbances. [1] [4] [rarediseases.info.nih.gov]

  Painful vascular insufficiency may progress to frank gangrene and necrosis of the digits unless treatment is promptly instituted. [medtextfree.wordpress.com]

• Dyspnea

  A 52-year-old African American male with ET presented with chest pain, shortness of breath, and dyspnea on exertion. His ET was managed with hydroxyurea 1500 mg by mouth twice a day and anagrelide 1 mg by mouth 3 times a day. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  In addition, clots can travel to the lungs (pulmonary embolism), blocking blood flow in the lungs and causing chest pain and difficulty breathing (dyspnea). [ghr.nlm.nih.gov]

  […] migraines Paresthesias of the hands and feet Thrombotic events Thrombosis may cause symptoms in the affected site (eg, neurologic deficits with stroke or transient ischemic attack; leg pain, swelling, or both with lower extremity thrombosis; chest pain and dyspnea [merckmanuals.com]

• Hemoptysis

  Other superficial bleeding manifestations of ET include mucosal hemorrhage, such as epistaxis, hemoptysis, gingival oozing or bleeding from the gastrointestinal or genitourinary tracts. [cancertherapyadvisor.com]

• Hepatomegaly

  PHYSICAL EXAMINATION • Unremarkable • 40-50% present with splenomegaly • 20% present with hepatomegaly 12. [slideshare.net]

  Hepatomegaly may rarely occur. Myelofibrosis is common. Transformation to Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) occurs in 0.6-5% of patients with ET; the risk may be comparable to that of the healthy population. [askhematologist.com]

  In some cases the liver may also be enlarged (hepatomegaly). Other symptoms include weight loss and generalised itching. [leukaemia.org.au]

  […] include: Bleeding tendency Microvascular occlusion Thrombosis of major arteries leading to symptoms such as stroke and transient ischemic attacks Vasomotor manifestations such as headache, transient visual disturbances and syncope Mild splenomegaly Hepatomegaly [pathologyoutlines.com]

  Approximately 40-50% of patients present with splenomegaly; 20% present with hepatomegaly. Causes The etiology and predisposing factors for the development of essential thrombocytosis (primary thrombocythemia) remain unclear. [emedicine.medscape.com]

• Hepatosplenomegaly

  Ultrasound scan An ultra sound scan can be used to assess hepatosplenomegaly, which can then provide an indication of how far the disease has progressed. [aoporphan.com]

• Hematuria

  […] disturbances is erythromelalgia, consisting of congestion, redness and burning pain to ischemia and gangrene of the distal portions of toes and fingers. 15 The most frequent bleeding events are hemorrhages from the gastrointestinal tract followed by hematuria [nature.com]

• Headache

  Our first case had platelets 1,500,000/mm(3), and a second child was symptomatic with recurrent headache. Both responded well to therapy with hydroxyurea (dose 15-30 mg/kg/day) and tolerated it well. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  Case A 32-year-old woman, 4 weeks postpartum, presented to the ED with a chief complaint of headache, which she stated had become worse over the past 4 days. The headache was gradual-onset, bioccipital, and pressure-like. [mdedge.com]

  Causes - Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia (Essential Thrombocythemia) * Anemia * Central nervous system ischemia * Coughing up blood * Deep vein thrombosis * Dizziness * Enlarged spleen * Headache * Increased platelets * Melena * Menorrhagia * Nosebleed * [checkorphan.org]

• Stroke

  Although the international normalized ratio was in the therapeutic range, he had 3 additional ischemic stroke episodes with the same symptoms after the index stroke. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  The Lausanne Stroke Registry: analysis of 1,000 consecutive patients with first stroke. Stroke. 1988 ; 19 :1083-1092. Crossref Medline Google Scholar 13 Arboix A, Massons J, Oliveres M, García L, Titus F. [stroke.ahajournals.org]

  In some cases, blood clots in large vessels may result in brain stroke or heart attack. In pregnant females, this condition may cause miscarriages. [symptoma.com]

• Dizziness

  Causes - Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia (Essential Thrombocythemia) * Anemia * Central nervous system ischemia * Coughing up blood * Deep vein thrombosis * Dizziness * Enlarged spleen * Headache * Increased platelets * Melena * Menorrhagia * Nosebleed * [checkorphan.org]

  A total of 31 (79.5%) patients experienced momelotinib-related adverse events (AEs), the most frequent being headache (23.1%), dizziness (18.0%), somnolence (15.4%), nausea (15.4%), and fatigue (15.4%). [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  Side effects include flu-like symptoms, dizziness and tiredness ( fatigue ). Anagrelide Anagrelide is a drug that reduces the number of platelets in the blood. It's given as a capsule. [web.archive.org]

  Symptoms of blood clots may include any of the following: Headache (most common) Tingling, coldness, or blueness in the hands and feet Feeling dizzy or lightheaded Vision problems Mini- strokes ( transient ischemic attacks ) or stroke If bleeding is a [nlm.nih.gov]

  In the central nervous system, it manifests itself in the guise of functional disturbances such as repetitive sight and speech disorders, dizziness, balance difficulties, paralysis and even seizures. [aoporphan.com]

• Tingling

  Minor symptoms can include bruising, bleeding such as bleeding gums, nose bleeds, heavy menstrual periods, pain, tingling, burning or numbness in fingers and toes, skin sensations-tingling, feeling of something crawling on your arm, headache and fatigue [medlink.com]

  The hands and feet may burn, turn red, and tingle, and the fingertips may feel cold. Blood tests usually provide a diagnosis, but sometimes a bone marrow biopsy is needed. Treatments that suppress symptoms and decrease platelet production are given. [msdmanuals.com]

  Symptoms of blood clots may include any of the following: Headache (most common) Tingling, coldness, or blueness in the hands and feet Feeling dizzy or lightheaded Vision problems Mini- strokes ( transient ischemic attacks ) or stroke If bleeding is a [nlm.nih.gov]

  Symptoms, when they do occur, commonly include: Thrombosis Abnormal bleeding Headaches Tingling in the extremities Pain in the extremities Peripheral Blood Findings The platelet count is greater than 600 x 109/L, frequently 1,000 - 5,000 x 109/L. [labce.com]

  This occurs in around half of the patients and is noticeable in the fingers and toes through a reddening of the skin, which is accompanied by swelling (erythromelalgia) and a burning and tingling sensation. [aoporphan.com]

• Paresthesia

  Symptoms and signs may include weakness, headaches, paresthesias, bleeding, splenomegaly, and erythromelalgia with digital ischemia. [msdmanuals.com]

  Some patients with ET are asymptomatic, while others may experience microcirculatory disturbances or vasomotor events: headaches, visual disturbances, lightheadedness, atypical chest pain, distal paresthesias, erythromelalgia, and other symptoms of transient [orpha.net]

  Symptoms and signs may include weakness, headaches, paresthesias, bleeding, and erythromelalgia with digital ischemia. [merckmanuals.com]

• Nausea

  Symptoms varied and included cerebral ischemic attacks, mental concentration disturbances followed by throbbing headaches, nausea, vomiting, syncope or even seizures. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  Side effects may include flu-like symptoms, confusion, nausea, depression, diarrhea, seizures, irritability and sleepiness. [mayoclinic.org]

  Nausea. Discomfort in arms, legs, back, neck, jaw or abdomen. In high risk cases clotting in the brain may result in stroke. [symptoma.com]

• Abdominal Pain

  deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism ), headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, visual disturbances, dizziness, fainting, and numbness in the extremities; the most common signs are increased white blood cell count, reduced red blood cell [en.wikipedia.org]

• Melena

  Symptoms - Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia (Essential Thrombocythemia) The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia includes the 18 symptoms listed below: * Spontaneous bleeding * Coughing up blood * Melena * [checkorphan.org]

  A history of gastrointestinal blood loss (melena and/or hematemesis) or biological evidence in favor of chronic occult blood loss may be evidenced at diagnosis. Secondary bleeding, eventually life-threatening can also occur after trauma or surgery. [ojrd.biomedcentral.com]

• Blood in Stool

  The patients may complain of nose bleeds, blood in stools, early bruising, prolonged bleeding from cuts or other injuries, burning or tingling sensations in palms and soles of the hands and feet respectively. [symptoma.com]

• Thrombosis

  In this regard, we find it practically useful to consider three layers of classification based on thrombosis history (no thrombosis vs arterial thrombosis vs venous thrombosis), age ( JAK2 V617F. [doi.org]

• Bleeding Gums

  This may appear as nosebleeds, bleeding gums or bruising. Rarely, essential thrombocythemia may progress to these potentially life-threatening diseases: Acute myelogenous leukemia. [mayoclinic.org]

  They can include: nosebleeds bruising abnormal vaginal bleeding bleeding gums. If you develop any of these symptoms in between check-ups, you should discuss them with your doctor or haematologist (a specialist in blood disorders). [web.archive.org]

  Affected people may have nosebleeds, bleeding gums, or bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract. [ghr.nlm.nih.gov]

  Some people notice frequent or severe nose bleeds or bleeding gums and some women may have unusually heavy menstrual periods. In pregnancy, uncontrolled essential thrombocythaemia can reduce the blood supply to the placenta or foetus. [leukaemia.org.au]

  Minor symptoms can include bruising, bleeding such as bleeding gums, nose bleeds, heavy menstrual periods, pain, tingling, burning or numbness in fingers and toes, skin sensations-tingling, feeling of something crawling on your arm, headache and fatigue [medlink.com]

• Scotoma

  MIAs were frequently preceded or followed by ocular ischemic events of blurred vision, scotomas, transient flashing of the eyes, and sudden transient partial blindness preceded or followed erythromelalgia in the toes or fingers. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  Patients also report paresthesias and episodic transient ischemic attacks; transient neurologic symptoms include the following: Unsteadiness Dysarthria Dysphoria Vertigo Dizziness Migraine Syncope Scotoma Seizures Thrombosis of large veins and arteries [emedicine.medscape.com]

  The MIAs in these 10 JAK2 V617F mutated MPN patients ranged from attacks of transient blindness, diplopia and scotomas to migraine-like attacks followed by throbbing headaches, nausea, vomiting or even seizures. [wjgnet.com]

  How I manage patients with ET Low-dose aspirin In ET, aspirin, 100 mg daily, has been found to control microvascular symptoms, such as erythromelalgia, and transient neurological and ocular disturbances including dysarthria, hemiparesis, scintillating scotomas [nature.com]

  […] feature of ET and other MPNs affects patients’ quality of life and is multifactorial in etiology. 23-25 Vasomotor symptoms, including headaches, erythromelalgia, acroparesthesias, livedo reticularis, transient ischemic attacks, peripheral ischemia, scotomas [hematologyandoncology.net]

• Visual Impairment

  The classic feature is optic nerve dysfunction and visual impairment out of proportion with the degree of proptosis. Some patients are observed (some tumours have an indolent course) but most require surgical excision radiotherapy. [patient.info]

  Permanent visual impairment is rare if the condition is identified and treated quickly. When to get medical advice See your GP or an optometrist (optician) if you notice that one or both of your eyes are protruding. [nidirect.gov.uk]

• Pruritus

  We currently do not recommend treatment with ruxolutinib or other JAK2 inhibitors in PV or ET, unless in the presence of severe and protracted pruritus or marked splenomegaly that is not responding to the aforementioned drugs. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  […] clustered megas Megas Erythroid dysplasia, ring sideroblasts, megas Erythroid hypoplasia, small megas Marrow Fibrosis Varies in spent phase in fibrotic phase Minimal Varies Minimal Splenomegaly Absent Clinical/Other B symptoms Hypertension, thrombosis, pruritus [surgpathcriteria.stanford.edu]

  Other disease features include leukocytosis, splenomegaly, thrombohemorrhagic complications, vasomotor disturbances, pruritus, and a small risk of disease progression into acute leukemia or myelofibrosis. [doi.org]

  […] polycythemia vera; polycythemia vera patients also present with decreased erythropoietin (EPO) Polycythemia vera patients usually present with some symptoms related to hyperviscosity such as headaches or visual disturbance; some patients may present with pruritus [pathologyoutlines.com]

• Purpura

  […] essential (hemorrhagic) thrombocythemia ( D47.3 ) hemorrhagic thrombocythemia ( D47.3 ) purpura fulminans ( D65 ) thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura ( M31.1 ) Waldenström hypergammaglobulinemic purpura ( D89.0 ) ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code D69 Purpura and [icd10data.com]

  Von Willebrand Diseases Idiopathic Thrombocytenic Purpura Diseases of Plasma Include: Deep Vain Thrombosis Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation Hypercogulable State Van Willebrand Diseases [play.google.com]

  カテゴリ がん 階層分類 ヒト疾患 [BR: jp08402 ] がん 造血組織およびリンパ系組織のがん H01612 本態性血小板血症 ICD-11 による疾患分類 [BR: jp08403 ] 03 Diseases of the blood or blood-forming organs Coagulation defects, purpura or other haemorrhagic or related conditions Fibrinolytic defects 3B63 Thrombocytosis [genome.jp]

  (D47.3) 전격성 자반증(purpura fulminans)(D65) 혈전성 혈소판감소성 자반증(thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura)(M31.1) D69.0 알레르기성 자반증(Allergic purpura) 아나필락토이드 자반증(Anaphylactoid purpura) 헤노흐(-쇤라인) 자반증(Henoch(-Schonlein purpura) 출혈성 비혈소판감소성 자반증(Haemorrhagic nonthrombocytopenic [dic.impact.pe.kr]

  The remaining disorders consisted of polycythemia vera (2), smoker’s polycythemia (1), thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (1), familial protein C deficiency (1), IgA myeloma (1), acute leukemia (1), and Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia (1). [stroke.ahajournals.org]

• Night Sweats

  In one large internet-based survey of 304 patients with ET, 72% reported fatigue, and 40% or more reported itching, night sweats and bone pain. [healio.com]

  sweats 10% weight loss in 6 months Bone marrow examination is necessary to exclude other myeloproliferative neoplasms, myelodysplastic syndromes associated with isolated del(5q) and myelodysplastic / myeloproliferative neoplasm Prognostic factors Initial [pathologyoutlines.com]

  Systemic symptoms such as weight loss, fevers and night sweats are unusual in ET; their occurrence should raise the suspicion of an alternative diagnosis. The physical exam in most patients with ET is normal. [cancertherapyadvisor.com]

• Petechiae

  The following symptoms require prompt attention: Bleeding symptoms Easy bruising Bleeding for no apparent reason Unusually heavy or prolonged bleeding Nose or gum bleeding Bleeding of mucous membrane Petechiae, or tiny areas of pinpoint bleeding on the [uihc.org]

  Petechiae are never seen. A history of gastrointestinal blood loss (melena and/or hematemesis) or biological evidence in favor of chronic occult blood loss may be evidenced at diagnosis. [ojrd.biomedcentral.com]

• Leg Pain

  Resources - Hemorrhagic thrombocythemia (Essential Thrombocythemia) Call your health care provider: * If unexplained or prolonged bleeding occurs * If chest pain, leg pain, confusion, weakness, numbness, or other new symptoms develop [checkorphan.org]

  You notice chest pain, leg pain, confusion, weakness, numbness, or other new symptoms. Images References Mascarenhas J, Iancu-Rubin C, Kremyanskaya M, Najfeld V, Hoffman R. Essential thrombocythemia. [ufhealth.org]

  You notice chest pain, leg pain, confusion, weakness, numbness, or other new symptoms. Review Date: 2/1/2017 Reviewed By: Todd Gersten, MD, Hematology/Oncology, Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute, Wellington, FL. [account.allinahealth.org]

  Pain or swelling in arms or legs Shortness of breath Chest pain Increased coughing (possibly with blood) Follow-up care and prognosis ET requires regular appointments with your doctor. [uihc.org]

  Thrombosis in the legs can cause leg pain, swelling, or both. In addition, clots can travel to the lungs (pulmonary embolism), blocking blood flow in the lungs and causing chest pain and difficulty breathing (dyspnea). [ghr.nlm.nih.gov]

• Back Pain

  We report a case of a 68-year-old woman with abdominal and back pain. The diagnostic work-up showed a left adrenal gland infarction associated with essential thrombocythemia. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  pain, pruritus and dyspepsia. [oatext.com]

• Neck Pain

  She denied head injury, fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, neck pain, visual changes, focal weakness, or numbness. Her past medical history was significant for essential thrombocytosis (ET) with three prior spontaneous abortions. [mdedge.com]

• Epistaxis

  Epistaxis. Early bruising. Thrombi may form anywhere in the body including the heart and intestine, thus compromising their blood supply. Thrombosis occurring in small vessels mainly causes numbness and abnormal burning sensations of hands and feet. [symptoma.com]

  Bleeding is usually mild and manifests as epistaxis, easy bruising, or GI bleeding. However, thrombosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in ET. [askhematologist.com]

  Bleeding is usually mild, rarely spontaneous, and manifests as epistaxis, easy bruisability, or GI bleeding. However, serious bleeding may occur in a small percentage of cases with extreme thrombocytosis. [merckmanuals.com]

  Other superficial bleeding manifestations of ET include mucosal hemorrhage, such as epistaxis, hemoptysis, gingival oozing or bleeding from the gastrointestinal or genitourinary tracts. [cancertherapyadvisor.com]

Most of the cases of essential thrombocythemia are diagnosed during routine blood tests. In patients with the signs and symptoms of platelet dysfunction or thrombocytosis, the diagnosis of primary thrombocythemia is established after ruling out all the causes of these abnormalities.

In order to confirm the diagnosis, a number of different tests are required. These include the following [7].

• Complete blood count: The blood count will show increased numbers of platelets greater than 600,000 per micro liter of blood.
• Blood smear: Blood smear will show abnormally large or clumped platelets.
• Genetic testing: This is done to look for JAK2 kinase mutation.
• Bone marrow aspiration: This will show abnormal megakaryocytes.
• Bone marrow biopsy: Bone marrow biopsy is required to confirm the results of bone marrow aspiration.

• Enlargement of the Liver

  This progressive disorder results in bone marrow scarring, leading to severe anemia and enlargement of your liver and spleen. [mayoclinic.org]

  If a patient shows up with enlarged spleen or liver which means that you have blood production taking place outside the bone marrow, treatment is a very good idea. [medlink.com]

  Because kinases are very powerful drivers of cell growth, this genetic change leads to an elevation in blood counts and enlargement of the liver and spleen. [rarediseases.org]

• Thrombocytosis

  […] primary Thrombocytosis familial thrombocytosis hereditary thrombocythemia hemorrhagic thrombocythemia Primary Thrombocythemia essential thrombocytemia ET essential thrombocytosis Idiopathic thrombocythemia Thrombocythemia type 1 THCYT1 THROMBOCYTHEMIA [wikidata.org]

  The patient was evaluated for thrombocytosis because he was in remission and suffering persistent thrombocytosis under treatment. After excluding the causes of secondary thrombocytosis, bone marrow aspiration and biopsy was performed. [ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

  Convert to ICD-10-CM : 238.71 converts approximately to: 2015/16 ICD-10-CM D47.3 Essential (hemorrhagic) thrombocythemia Approximate Synonyms Thrombocytosis Thrombocytosis (high blood platelets) Clinical Information A chronic myeloproliferative disorder [icd9data.com]

  […] only about 3-5% of essential thrombocytosis cases. [emedicine.com]

• Platelet Aggregation Abnormal

  Other laboratory findings in ET include: Normal or slightly increased thrombopoeitin Usually normal prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) Platelet aggregation: abnormal with adenosine diphosphate, epinephrine, and collagen [labce.com]

  aggregation abnormalities in patients are variable. [medtextfree.wordpress.com]

  Although platelet aggregation abnormalities exist in most patients, these abnormalities do not appear to correlate with the risk of bleeding or thrombosis. [clevelandclinicmeded.com]

Most of the patients with primary thrombocythemia do not need any treatment.

In individuals who are at a higher risk of developing thrombosis or abnormal bleeding, the mainstay of treatment is to lower the platelet count [8]. The most widely used drugs for this purpose are hydroxyurea, interferon-alpha or anagrelide along with low doses of aspirin. These medications are to be taken for whole life [9].

In pregnant and lactating patients, hydroxyurea and anagrelide are contraindicated. These females are monitored closely throughout pregnancy to detect any blood clots. After parturition, these patients receive injections of low molecular weight heparin daily for several weeks as during this time they are more prone to develop thrombosis.

In rare cases with life threatening complications, platelet count can be rapidly reduced by removing platelets directly from blood in a procedure referred to as platelet apheresis.

The outlook for the disease may vary from one patient to another. Most of the patients, if diagnosed and treated properly, may have a normal life span [10].

In a small number of people, complications from bleeding or blood clotting may arise. Rarely, the disease may have the following complications:

• Acute leukemia or myelofibrosis
• Severe bleeding
• Stroke
• Myocardial infarction

There is no definite cause of essential thrombocythemia or other myeloproliferative disorders; however, certain gene mutations in the JAK2 kinase, a member of the Janus-kinase family of genes, have been found in half of the patients with this disorder [3] [4].

Essential thrombocythemia is not a very common disease. The annual incidence rate of essential thrombocythemia is about 2 to 3 per 100, 000 individuals.

The average age at diagnosis is around 40 to 50 years, although it may occur in females below 40 years of age [1]. Very rarely, it can also occur in children and young adults [2].

The bone marrow contains stem cells that develop into different blood cell lineages. Platelets are produced from large cells called megakaryocytes. The normal platelet count ranges from 150,000 to 300,000 per microliter of blood. The main function of platelets is to help in hemostasis by forming a platelet plug at the site of bleeding.

In essential thrombocythemia, there is an increase in the number of platelets in the blood. Besides, these extra platelets do not function normally. In about 50 percent of the patients, this abnormality occurs due to a mutation in the JAK2 kinase which renders the megakaryocytes excessively sensitive to stimulation by the growth factors.

These abnormally functioning thrombocytes may cause episodes of bleeding from different sites in the body or they may cause the formation of blood clots restricting blood flow to the vital organs.

There are no guidelines for prevention of essential thrombocythemia.

Essential thrombocythemia or essential thrombocytosis (ET) is an uncommon chronic hematologic disorder in which megakaryocytes in the bone marrow produce excessive platelets (thrombocytes) without any known cause. It is also known as primary thrombocythemia (PT). 

Essential thrombocythemia is one of the four components of a group of conditions called myeloproliferative disorders; the other three members of this group being chronic myelogenous leukemia, polycythemia vera and primary myelofibrosis.

It is primarily a disease of platelets but rarely other cell lineages such as red blood cells and white blood cells are also produced excessively. Essential thrombocythemia mostly occurs in people of the age of 40 to 50 years.

Most common presentations include abnormal bleeding (from the respiratory system, gastrointestinal system and skin), thrombosis, headache, dizziness and abnormal sensations in hands and feet.

The condition needs no treatment if it is symptomless; however, in case of symptomatic disease, platelet-lowering drugs are used along with small doses of aspirin to control thrombotic events.

In patients with proper treatment, the life expectancy is the same as that of a person who is not suffering from this condition.

Essential thrombocythemia is a rare, slowly progressive disease of blood in which a large number of abnormal platelets are produced. These platelets cause abnormal blood clotting or bleeding episodes in the persons suffering from this disorder.

The patients may complain of nose bleeds, blood in stools, early bruising, prolonged bleeding from cuts or other injuries, burning or tingling sensations in palms and soles of the hands and feet respectively.

In some cases, blood clots in large vessels may result in brain stroke or heart attack. In pregnant females, this condition may cause miscarriages.

The disease is treated with medicines which lower the number of platelets and the overall prognosis is good with a normal life expectancy.

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