Immune thrombocytopenia in the elderly: clinical course in 525 patients from a single center in China

Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), often diagnosed in the elderly, is a hematologic disorder induced by autoimmune mechanism. In this retrospective study, we evaluated the clinical features, the risk of bleeding, and the response to treatment in 525 elderly ITP patients (age ≥60 years) diagnosed at our center from 1980 to 2009. There were more females at 60–74 years of age ( P = 0.044). The median duration of follow-up was 27 months (range 1–253 months). Ten patients developed thrombosis during treatment of ITP. At diagnosis, 461 patients (87.8 %) had signs of bleeding. The risk of severe bleeding was associated with both platelet count ( P