Platelet volume and plateletcrit in dogs with presumed primary immune-mediated thrombocytopenia

Mean platelet volume (MPV) and plateletcrit (PCT) are indices used in evaluating immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (IMT) in humans and in dogs with congenital macrothrombocytopenia. These indices may provide clinically valuable information in acquired thrombocytopenia.

Dogs with presumed primary IMT will have increased MPV, and therefore platelet mass (PCT) will increase faster than platelet count (PLT) during recovery.

Forty-nine dogs with automated PLT < 30,000/μL because of presumed primary IMT and hematocrit (HCT), PCT, MPV, and platelet distribution width determined from the same complete blood count (CBC), and 46 healthy controls.

Case-control retrospective study; PLT, PCT, MPV, and platelet distribution width (PDW) were recorded from CBCs from 49 dogs, with 45 having data collected on the day of presentation. Fifteen were confirmed to have attained a PLT ≥ 75,000/μL on at least 1 CBC within 15 days after admission. The PCT equivalent to a PLT of 75,000/μL (assuming an average MPV) was calculated for comparison with PLT in terms of time to achieve a threshold of platelet mass by the 2 measures.

Mean platelet volume was higher in IMT dogs (17.3 fl) than the reference population (10.5 fl) (P < .0001). The PDW was not significantly different among the groups. The median time for PCT to reach threshold in confirmed responders was faster (3 days) compared with PLT (4 days).

Immune-mediated thrombocytopenia is characterized by increased MPV. Time to achieve a threshold PCT tended to be shorter than PLT, suggesting that PCT may be a useful platelet parameter for monitoring dogs with IMT.