Flu makes my Platlets Go UP

I checked my platelets yesterday with a 3 week break from last NPlate shot and I got a count of 70. It should be at 30-40 normally.

What is the mechanism of this?

This is the second time this has happened to me. In Jan I got 8 weeks of respite before I got my next shot. ( I thought I was cured).

This Friday I had bad bout of flu and still have not recovered yet.

Jay, there was a thread a few months ago that seemed to suggest if one get's a virus in the lungs that can cause counts to go up.

pdsa.org/discussion-group/6-general-itp-discussion/29609-anyone-see-this-article-platelets-could-possibly-be-formed-in-lungs.html#58585

That sounds about right to me - I always thought my sons count went down with an infection but up with a virus.

Yes, my counts go up with viral illness too. When I had bronchitis in Jan my counts skyrocketed to 325. I haven't seen those numbers in 10 years. I thought I had gone into remission too! But no, it was just the illness. My hematologist explained but I couldn't understand much of what he said. He said it was because of the "cytokines". I think? the cytokines caused the immune system to shift away from the platelets and onto attacking the virus? I totally could be wrong with that but he did say it was something to do with the cytokines.
It will be interesting to see if your counts stay up. My counts with Nplate have been low in the 20-30s for the past month, but today they've come back up into the 40s. I just stay on the same dose even when the counts drop because I've found if I leave it alone they do seem to come back up on their own.

If you subscribe to the belief that ITP can be an autoimmune problem then it makes sense if your immune system is being distracted with a more immediate threat than your platelets would thereby be left alone .

My count drops be it a viral or bacterial infection

mrsb04 wrote: My count drops be it a viral or bacterial infection

Same. Any sickness means a drop for me. I guess it just goes to show different strokes for different folks!

"it just goes to show different strokes for different folks!"

You are right mom! I had a "flu" years ago and my count jumped too high and the only reason I know is because a count had been scheduled. Normally I wouldn't know as I don't get counts after being ill.

Also I must wonder at the word flu. Was the "flu" really diagnosed as the flu or did people just have a nasty bug that was going around. We seem to term everything "flu".

This miracle continues for now after two weeks still I am at 60. So Iam 5 weeks out and still at 60 from my last nplate shot.

One think I have found my wbc is at 7.85 which is high end of my range normally it varies from 5-7. so looks my body still fighting an infection.