Complement-Mediated Autoimmune Thrombocytopenia

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
CHRONIC or adult autoimmune thrombocytopenia usually occurs with high levels of platelet-associated IgG antibodies,1 2 3 platelet-associated IgM antibodies,4 5 6 or both. The role of complement-mediated platelet injury in autoimmune thrombocytopenia has not been entirely explained. Most workers have found complement activation to be present,7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 although some have not.15 16 17 18 Complement activation does have a leading role in certain types of immune thrombocytopenia, such as that due to drugs. In these disorders, severe thrombocytopenia results when complement activation is induced by a reaction of antibody with the drug (e.g., quinine) and platelet membranes.19 In this paper, we describe a patient with apparent chronic autoimmune . . .