Enlarged spleen, Not sure if related

I'm new here sadly not new to ITP. I'm currently without a hemo because I moved across the country due to domestic violence. I ended up in the hospital because my left side has been hurting bad. They did a ct scan and found my spleen is enlarged. My platelets are down to 80,000 which my norm is around 120,000. They were not to concerned but I am because I also have Von Willbrands disease. My old hemo told me if I ever hit 75,000 he would start treatment. I'm really wondering why my spleen is enlarged. Do any of you know if it's related or something totally different to worry about till I get into a new doctor?

ITP generally doesn't cause an enlarged spleen. There are other things that can cause it such as mono or liver problems. Did they do any blood work? If it's slightly enlarged, they may not be concerned because you are not in any danger of a rupture. If it's very enlarged, they should take it seriously.

As for treatment, how are your symptoms?

I'd follow up with a doctor, probably a GP to start, and look for a new Hemo. ER's usually don't diagnose, they treat emergencies and tell you to follow-up with a doctor.

My spleen is slightly enlarged.They did blood work and everything else was fine as far as liver and white blood cells were normal. He said it wasn't any type of infection. My nose has been bleeding lately which I've never had to deal with in the past. My gums are bled pretty bad as well. I get these painful lumps that pop up and then as they go down they turn into bruises. I'm not sure what that is. I'm extremely tired, dizzy and my whole body aches.

You could have something else going on. Seriously, look for a new GP and see him as soon as you can. Hopefully he will run some tests and rule things out; that will give you peace of mind. If he finds something, you'll handle it and treat it.

You've been under a lot of stress which can trigger physical problems. You'll need to deal with that as well since stress can take a toll.

I saw a new gp on Wednesday and they are saying the same thing. That is most likely my hematological issues causing it. I don't like doctors for this very reason they always blame it on stuff like this. I'm in a very small town so my options are quite limited.

I know how that is Lynda and I don't want to say that everything is caused by stress. You need a good physical work up, but emotional health is very important as well. All you can do is keep pushing for yourself, don't give up.

I was "diagnosed" with ITP in December (platelet count in the low 60s). I put diagnosed in quotes because nothing was really investigated. A recent blood test I did for my liver (first time) revealed my iron levels were through the roof (normal is 30 to 300 and mine was 2017)! An abdominal ultrasound on my abdominal and pelvic area revealed that my liver, pancreas, and gall bladder seemed fine, but my spleen was double the size of normal and that will need to be investigated.

I did a little research as to what could cause an enlarged spleen in my case with some other minor symptoms I have like night sweats and fatigue and the symptom checker I used (to be taken with a grain of salt) spit out Mono, Leukemia, and Hodgkin's Disease. That naturally worried me, but I read elsewhere that iron overload (hemochromatosis) can cause an enlarged spleen. In fact, I even read on one website that ITP could cause an enlarged spleen, but I haven't really seen that on other websites so I'm not sure how accurate it is: www.emedicinehealth.com/enlarged_spleen_splenomegaly/page2_em.htm

I guess the logic is that if the spleen is continuously trapping platelets all the time it may grow in size. So in my case it may be that I do not have ITP but rather hemochromatosis which has caused my spleen to enlarge which in turn has caused too many platelets to be trapped. A lot of guessing here, but throwing it out there. I am seeing a hematologist in 10 days for my platelet follow up, and our attention will likely shift to this. On a positive note, after changing my diet around and exercising more, my platelets have increased from 62-64 to 78.