Complications of heparin administration in normal individuals

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Abstract
The incidence, severity, and pathogenic mechanism of heparin‐associated thrombocytopenia with both bovine and porcine heparin administration were studied in forty normal males randomized to one of four treatment groups: beef lung heparin #1, beef lung heparin #2, porcine gut heparin, and saline control. All of the subjects receiving heparin developed a reversible increase in serum transaminases (SGOT, SGPT). However, other measurements of liver function were normal. Thirty‐three percent of these heparinized normals had decreased platelet counts. The incidence of platelet count decrease was similar for both bovine and porcine heparins, but 4 of the 20 normals receiving bovine heparin had platelet counts less than 150,000/μl. Immune pathogenesis was investigated by analyzing plasma from the volunteers for both platelet antibody and immune complexes. None of the men had increased plateletassociated IgG. Among the ten subjects with decreased platelet counts, IgG immune complexes were detected in three and C1q in seven. The heparin‐associated thrombo‐cytopenia appears not to be mediated by a platelet antibody. More probably it reflects a direct effect of the heparin on platelets.