Adult Primary and Secondary Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura: A Comparative Analysis of Characteristics and Clinical Course

This study was conducted to compare the platelet count and the presence of bleeding manifestations at initial diagnosis of immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) between patients with primary and secondary ITP. Medical records for 67 consecutive adult patients with ITP were reviewed retrospectively and the relevant data were abstracted. Thirty-eight (56.7%) patients were diagnosed as having primary ITP and 29 (43.3%) were considered to have secondary ITP. At the time of diagnosis, the median initial platelet count (median: 60 × 109/L) for patients with secondary ITP was significantly (P < .005) higher than that for patients with primary ITP (median: 3.5 × 109/L). Ecchymosis and/or purpura was observed in 4 (13.8%) patients with secondary ITP and in 33 (86.6%) patients with primary ITP (P value