Home platelet test kit?

Does anyone know if they sell a platelet home test kit?

No such thing.

If there had been such a thing in 2007, my poor child would have been losing platelets due to her worried mom testing her several times a day. The subject comes up on here from time to time, and I wonder whether being able to know the number all the time would be a blessing or a curse. We all get into a routine of living by the number, and it can become an obsession. It would be reassuring to know a count right before a kid undertakes an activity, but, then, with a low count comes a treatment decision. That consideration would seem to indicate that counts are best done under circumstances that result in a doctor being notified. On the other hand, perhaps, through technology and medical research, one day ITP will be like diabetes, in which a patient can assess and respond at home as trained.
Norma

Yeah I think this a question that we all have at first and I think from memory I may have asked it also when I first had ITP, everyone here told me that you do eventually stop worrying about what your count is and I found this hard to believe at that time...... but it is true, after a while life takes over and counts are done less and less frequently, I don't stress over it as much as I used too

I would hate one! Like Norma, it would make me totally obsessed with my son's count, whereas with counts every 5-6 weeks, I sometimes succeed in ignoring ITP for periods of time. It also goes against the whole medical trend of treating symptoms and not numbers. Really, by the time that your count is low enough to be at all worrying, most people have some sort of symptoms anyway.

Ali

milly wrote: Yeah I think this a question that we all have at first and I think from memory I may have asked it also when I first had ITP, everyone here told me that you do eventually stop worrying about what your count is and I found this hard to believe at that time...... but it is true, after a while life takes over and counts are done less and less frequently, I don't stress over it as much as I used too

Agree Milly. Once you get used to the "rollercoaster" ride it does get alot easier!!

Being able to test your Platelets like blood sugar for those with Diabetes would be Awesome!!

Testing for glucose for diabetics is very different as it is looking at the chemicals in a drop of blood. Imagine the sort of machine you'd need for counting cells in the blood, far more complex and expensive.

Ann wrote: Testing for glucose for diabetics is very different as it is looking at the chemicals in a drop of blood. Imagine the sort of machine you'd need for counting cells in the blood, far more complex and expensive.

I had the same thought Ann.
My daughter has T1 diabetes which needs only a drop of blood to test. I have seen the machines used to run samples in the lab. They are HUGE and EXPENSIVE!!!

I'd love one. But the training and the equipment cost would certainly never pan out in the return on investment!

However, I'm planning a cruise next year to Alaska, and my hema is already talking about how I'll be tested while I'm gone. Gonna be there 2 weeks, and I get tested twice a week. I'm thinking I'll just take a little magic Pred while I'm gone and try not to worry about it.

I think that'd be a fine way of going about it!

Theres no reason to plan on testing yourself while youre on the cruise, especially since its next year.

Just go on the cruise and enjoy yourself - and post some pictures!