Poor survival and prediction of prolonged isolated thrombocytopenia post umbilical cord blood transplantation in patients with hematological malignancies.

Prolonged isolated thrombocytopenia (PIT) is a common complication after umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT). However, data on PIT prediction and impacts on transplantation outcomes for UCBT patients are rare. We retrospectively analyzed 244 patients with hematological malignancies who received single-unit UCBT at the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC between August 2018 and December 2019. Among them, PIT occurred in 49 recipients, with a crude incidence of 20.1%. In the PIT patients, the 2-year cumulative incidence of transplant-related mortality (TRM) was significantly higher, and the probabilities of 2-year overall survival, leukemia-free survival and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD)-free relapse-free survival were significantly poorer (57.1% vs. 88.6%; 53.1% vs. 81.9%; 22.4% vs. 59.8%; p < 0.001), without remarkable increases in the cumulative incidence of relapse or chronic GVHD. Importantly, the multivariate analysis revealed that lower high-resolution HLA compatibility (≤6/10), lower infused CD34+ cell count (≤1.78 × 105 /kg), grade II-IV acute GVHD preplatelet engraftment, a lower pretransplantation platelet count (≤100 × 109 /L), and a longer neutrophil engraftment time (≥17 days) were independent risk factors for PIT after UCBT. These results demonstrate that PIT is common after UCBT, predicting inferior survival and the need for more monitoring during the early phase.

Platelet Depletion after Thoraco-Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Endovascular Repair is Associated with Clinically Relevant Hemorrhagic Complications.

BACKGROUND: Thoraco-abdominal endovascular aortic repair (TA-EVAR) can be associated with platelet depletion (PD); the present study aims to evaluate PD incidence after TA-EVAR and to investigate its possible predictors and its influence on hemorrhagic complications and mortality. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of all TA-EVAR from 2010 to 2021 was performed to identify patients with PD, (reduction > 60%). Spontaneous hemorrhages considered were: intracranial or any hemorrhages requiring surgery. Risk factors for PD, correlation with hemorrhagic complications and 30-day mortality were investigated by uni/multivariate analysis. RESULTS: A total of 158 TA-EVAR were considered, 35(22%) female, 86(54%) extended thoraco-abdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) (Crawford type I, II, III), 79(50%) staged procedure, 31(20%) urgent treatment (symptomatic/ruptured). PD was identified in 42 (27%) patients and correlated to female sex, thrombus-free aortic lumen > 50mm, urgent treatment, extensive TAAA, blood transfusion >3 units and staged procedure at the univariate analysis. The multivariate analysis confirmed a significant correlation between PD and thrombus-free aortic lumen > 50mm, urgent treatment, blood transfusion > 3 units and staged procedure (odds ratio [OR]: 2.5 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.03-7.0), P = 0.04, OR 3.2 (95% CI 1.01-8.6), P= 0.03, OR 3.16 (95% CI 1.23-7.7), P = 0.03 and OR 2.71 (95% CI 1.2-6.2), P= 0.04, respectively). Overall, 13 hemorrhagic complications occurred (8 intracranial and 5 peripheral); PD was associated with higher risk of hemorrhagic complications (9/42 - 21% vs. 4/116 - 3%, OR: 7.6 [95% CI: 2.2-26.3], P= 0.001) and a higher risk of 30-day mortality in elective cases 4/25 - 16% vs. 3/101 - 3%, OR: 6.2 (95% CI: 1.3-29.8), P= 0.03. CONCLUSIONS: PD is a relatively common event after TA-EVAR and is associated with thrombus-free aortic lumen > 50mm, urgent treatment, blood transfusion > 3 units and staged procedure. Hemorrhagic complications and mortality are increased under these circumstances.

Persistent thrombocytopenia predicts poor long-term survival in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome: a 38-year follow-up study.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the impact of thrombocytopenia on survival in patients with APS. METHODS: Thrombocytopenia and other predictors of outcome were retrospectively evaluated in an aPL-positive and APS cohort with 38-year follow-up (1980-2018). Thrombocytopenia was defined as <150 × 109 platelets/l. Hazard ratios (HR) of mortality were calculated using Cox-regression models. RESULTS: Among 114 patients, 64% had primary APS, 25% secondary APS and 10% asymptomatic aPL. Mean follow-up was 19 (range 5-38) years. ANA [hazard ratio (HR) 1.8, 95% CI 0.8, 3.6, P = 0.10], arterial thrombotic events (HR 7.0, 95% CI 1.4, 3.5, P = 0.016), myocardial infarction (HR 8.3, 95% CI 1.1, 59, P = 0.03), intracardiac thrombosis (HR 17, 95% CI 1, 279, P = 0.04) and thrombocytopenia (HR 2.9, 95% CI 1.4, 6.1, P = 0.004) were risk factors for all-cause mortality, but in multivariate analysis only thrombocytopenia (HR 2.7, 95% CI 1.3, 6.0, P = 0.01) remained significant. Persistent (HR 4.4, 95% CI 2.1, 9.2, P = 0.001) and low-moderate thrombocytopenia (HR 2.8, 95% CI 1.2, 6.4, P = 0.01) were associated with a significant increase in mortality compared with acute (HR 1.6, 95% CI 0.5, 5.3, P = 0.40) and severe (HR 2.1, 95% CI 0.5, 9.2, P = 0.30) forms. APS patients with vs without thrombocytopenia were more frequently male (58 vs 24%, P = 0.001) with arterial thrombosis (55 vs 32%, P = 0.04), LA positivity (100 vs 87%, P = 0.04), type I aPL profile (89% vs 71%, P = 0.05) and anticoagulant treatment (89 vs 63%, P = 0.01). Thrombosis caused 13% of deaths in thrombocytopenic patients and 1% in those without (P = 0.01). CONCLUSION: Thrombocytopenia is an aPL-related manifestation that identifies patients with severe disease phenotype and high thrombotic risk. Persistent low-moderate thrombocytopenia is associated with a reduced long-term survival.

Predictive value of red blood cell distribution width in septic shock patients with thrombocytopenia: A retrospective study using machine learning.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis-associated thrombocytopenia (SAT) is common in critical patients and results in the elevation of mortality. Red cell distribution width (RDW) can reflect body response to inflammation and oxidative stress. We try to investigate the relationship between the RDW and the prognosis of patients with SAT through machine learning. METHODS: 809 patients were retrospectively analyzed from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III (MIMIC-III) database. The eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) and SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) were used to analyze the impact of each feature. Logistic regression analysis, propensity score matching (PSM), receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis, and the Kaplan-Meier method were used for data processing. RESULTS: The patients with thrombocytopenia had higher 28-day mortality (48.2%). Machine learning indicated that RDW was the second most important in predicting 28-day mortality. The RDW was significantly increased in non-survivors by logistic regression and PSM. ROC curve shows that RDW has moderate predictive power for 28-day mortality. The patients with RDW>16.05 exhibited higher mortality through Kaplan-Meier analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Interpretable machine learning can be applied in clinical research. Elevated RDW is not only common in patients with SAT but is also associated with a poor prognosis.

Characteristics and Outcomes of Patients With Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis in SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine-Induced Immune Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia.

Importance: Thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) has been reported after vaccination with the SARS-CoV-2 vaccines ChAdOx1 nCov-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) and Ad26.COV2.S (Janssen/Johnson & Johnson). Objective: To describe the clinical characteristics and outcome of patients with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination with and without TTS. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study used data from an international registry of consecutive patients with CVST within 28 days of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination included between March 29 and June 18, 2021, from 81 hospitals in 19 countries. For reference, data from patients with CVST between 2015 and 2018 were derived from an existing international registry. Clinical characteristics and mortality rate were described for adults with (1) CVST in the setting of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia, (2) CVST after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination not fulling criteria for TTS, and (3) CVST unrelated to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Exposures: Patients were classified as having TTS if they had new-onset thrombocytopenia without recent exposure to heparin, in accordance with the Brighton Collaboration interim criteria. Main Outcomes and Measures: Clinical characteristics and mortality rate. Results: Of 116 patients with postvaccination CVST, 78 (67.2%) had TTS, of whom 76 had been vaccinated with ChAdOx1 nCov-19; 38 (32.8%) had no indication of TTS. The control group included 207 patients with CVST before the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 63 of 78 (81%), 30 of 38 (79%), and 145 of 207 (70.0%) patients, respectively, were female, and the mean (SD) age was 45 (14), 55 (20), and 42 (16) years, respectively. Concomitant thromboembolism occurred in 25 of 70 patients (36%) in the TTS group, 2 of 35 (6%) in the no TTS group, and 10 of 206 (4.9%) in the control group, and in-hospital mortality rates were 47% (36 of 76; 95% CI, 37-58), 5% (2 of 37; 95% CI, 1-18), and 3.9% (8 of 207; 95% CI, 2.0-7.4), respectively. The mortality rate was 61% (14 of 23) among patients in the TTS group diagnosed before the condition garnered attention in the scientific community and 42% (22 of 53) among patients diagnosed later. Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study of patients with CVST, a distinct clinical profile and high mortality rate was observed in patients meeting criteria for TTS after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.

Association of thrombocytopenia and infection in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention.

BACKGROUND: The impact of thrombocytopenia on infection in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) remains poorly understood. AIMS: To evaluate the association between thrombocytopenia and infection in patients with STEMI. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with STEMI were identified from January 2010 to June 2016. The primary endpoint was in-hospital infection, and major adverse clinical events (MACE) and all-cause death were considered as secondary endpoints. RESULTS: A total of 1401 STEMI patients were enrolled and divided into two groups according to the presence (n = 186) or absence (n = 1215) of thrombocytopenia. The prevalence of in-hospital infection was significantly higher in the thrombocytopenic group (30.6% (57/186) vs. 16.2% (197/1215), p < 0.001). Prevalence of in-hospital MACE (30.1% (56/186) vs. 16.4% (199/1215), p < 0.001) and all-cause death (8.1% (15/186) vs. 3.8% (46/1215), p = 0.008) revealed an increasing trend. Multivariate analysis indicated that thrombocytopenia was independently associated with increased in-hospital infection (OR, 2.09; 95%CI 1.32-3.27; p = 0.001) and MACE (1.92; 1.27-2.87; p = 0.002), but not all-cause death (1.87; 0.88-3.78; p = 0.091). After a median follow-up of 2.85 years, thrombocytopenia was not associated with all-cause death at multivariable analysis (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.19; 95%CI 0.80-1.77; p = 0.383). CONCLUSIONS: Thrombocytopenia is significantly correlated with in-hospital infection and MACE, and might be used as a prognostic tool in patients with STEMI.

Hematological immune related adverse events after treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors.

INTRODUCTION: With the increasing use of checkpoint inhibitors, rare immune-related adverse events (irAE) are being identified. Haematological irAE (hem-irAE) are difficult to treat and have shown high mortality rates. In order to improve side-effect management for these potentially life-threatening events, we analysed frequency, severity and outcomes. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients who developed hem-irAE while being treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) therapy were retrospectively identified from 18 international cancer centres. RESULTS: In total, more than 7626 patients treated with ICI were screened, and 50 patients with hem-irAE identified. The calculated incidence amounts to 0.6% and median onset was 6 weeks after the ICI initiation (range 1-128 weeks). Thrombocytopenia and leucopaenia were the most frequent hem-irAE with 34% (17/50) and 34% (17/50), respectively, followed by anaemia 28% (14/50), hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (4% (2/50)), aplastic anaemia (2% (1/50)), acquired haemophilia A (2% (1/50)) and coagulation deficiency (2% (1/50)). Simultaneous thrombocytopenia and neutropenia occurred in two patients, concurrent anaemia and thrombocytopenia in one patient. Other than cessation of ICI (in 60%) and corticosteroids (in 78%), treatment included second-line immunosuppression in 24% of cases. Events resolved in 78% (39/50), while 18% (9/50) had persistent changes, and 2% (1/50) had fatal outcomes (agranulocytosis). CONCLUSION: Hem-irAE can affect all haematopoietic blood cell lineages and may persist or even be fatal. Management may require immunosuppression beyond corticosteroids. Although these irAE are rare, treating physicians should be aware, monitor blood counts regularly and promptly act upon detection.

Impact of Thrombocytopenia on In-Hospital Outcome in Patients Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

BACKGROUND: Thrombocytopenia was intuitively considered to be associated with higher risk of bleeding and multiple comorbidities after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, controversial results exist, and the real-world clinical impact of thrombocytopenia in patients undergoing PCI is largely unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of baseline thrombocytopenia on the prognosis of patients undergoing PCI. METHODS: Using the West China Hospital Inpatient Sample database, patients who underwent PCI were identified from August 2012 to January 2019. Baseline thrombocytopenia was defined as a preprocedural platelet count of 100 × 109/L or less obtained from a routine blood sample taken within 48 hours before coronary PCI. The clinical effect of the advanced thrombocytopenia group (≤85 × 109/L), according to the median value of platelet count in the thrombocytopenia cohort, was further assessed. The primary outcome was a composite of in-hospital death, bleeding events, and post-PCI transfusion. RESULTS: Of 9531 patients enrolled in our study, 936 had baseline thrombocytopenia and 8595 patients did not have. There were no significant differences in the primary outcome between the two groups. However, advanced thrombocytopenia was independently associated with higher risk of primary outcome (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.06 to 2.65, p = 0.029). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients with thrombocytopenia were associated with higher odds of major bleeding (BARC ≥ 2) (OR 2.56, 95% CI 1.24 to 5.44, p = 0.011). Compared with the nonthrombocytopenia group, the thrombocytopenia group with ticagrelor use had higher odds of major bleeding (OR 9.7, 95% CI 1.57 to 60.4 versus OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.03 to 1.69, interaction p = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS: It seems feasible for patients with thrombocytopenia to receive PCI, but close attention should be paid to advanced thrombocytopenia, the risk of postprocedure bleeding in ACS patients, and the use of more potent P2Y12 inhibitor.

Mediterranean Diet Maintained Platelet Count within a Healthy Range and Decreased Thrombocytopenia-Related Mortality Risk: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

There is little information on the dietary modulation of thrombosis-related risk factors such as platelet count. We aimed to assess the effects of Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) on platelet count and related outcomes in an older population at high cardiovascular risk. In participants of the PREDIMED (PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea) study, we assessed whether an intervention with a MedDiet enriched with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts, relative to a low-fat control diet, modulated platelet count (n = 4189), the risk of developing thrombocytosis and thrombocytopenia (n = 3086), and the association between these alterations and all-cause mortality (median follow-up time: 3.0 years). Although platelet count increased over time (+0.98·109 units/L·year [95% confidence interval: 0.12; 1.84]), MedDiet interventions moderated this increase, particularly in individuals with near-high baseline count (both MedDiets combined: -3.20·109 units/L·year [-5.81; -0.59]). Thrombocytopenia incidence was lower in the MedDiet interventions (incidence rates: 2.23% in control diet, 0.91% in MedDiets combined; hazard ratio: 0.44 [0.23; 0.83]). Finally, thrombocytopenia was associated with a higher risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio: 4.71 [2.69; 8.24]), but this relationship was attenuated in those allocated to MedDiet (p-interaction = 0.018). In brief, MedDiet maintained platelet counts within a healthy range and attenuated platelet-related mortality in older adults at high cardiovascular risk.

Thrombocytopenia as a prognostic marker in COVID-19 patients: diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis.

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate thrombocytopenia as a prognostic biomarker in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We performed a systematic literature search using PubMed, Embase and EuropePMC. The main outcome was composite poor outcome, a composite of mortality, severity, need for intensive care unit care and invasive mechanical ventilation. There were 8963 patients from 23 studies. Thrombocytopenia occurred in 18% of the patients. Male gender (P = 0.037) significantly reduce the incidence. Thrombocytopenia was associated with composite poor outcome (RR 1.90 (1.43-2.52), P < 0.001; I2: 92.3%). Subgroup analysis showed that thrombocytopenia was associated with mortality (RR 2.34 (1.23-4.45), P < 0.001; I2: 96.8%) and severity (RR 1.61 (1.33-1.96), P < 0.001; I2: 62.4%). Subgroup analysis for cut-off <100 × 109/l showed RR of 1.93 (1.37-2.72), P < 0.001; I2: 83.2%). Thrombocytopenia had a sensitivity of 0.26 (0.18-0.36), specificity of 0.89 (0.84-0.92), positive likelihood ratio of 2.3 (1.6-3.2), negative likelihood ratio of 0.83 (0.75-0.93), diagnostic odds ratio of 3 (2, 4) and area under curve of 0.70 (0.66-0.74) for composite poor outcome. Meta-regression analysis showed that the association between thrombocytopenia and poor outcome did not vary significantly with age, male, lymphocyte, d-dimer, hypertension, diabetes and CKD. Fagan's nomogram showed that the posterior probability of poor outcome was 50% in patients with thrombocytopenia, and 26% in those without thrombocytopenia. The Deek's funnel plot was relatively symmetrical and the quantitative asymmetry test was non-significant (P = 0.14). This study indicates that thrombocytopenia was associated with poor outcome in patients with COVID-19.PROSPERO ID: CRD42020213974.

Use of therapeutic plasma exchange in heparin-induced thrombocytopenia: A population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is characterized by anti-heparin/platelet factor 4 immune complexes, which are removed by therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE). Our main objective was to study TPE outcomes in HIT using a large administrative claims database. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We used the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) to identify hospital discharges of adult patients (≥18) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of HIT. Cases were classified into two groups based on TPE use. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes were thrombotic events, major bleeding, hospital length of stay (LOS), and charges. Multivariable regression analysis, controlling for age and medical comorbidities, was used to examine the association of TPE with study outcomes. RESULTS: A HIT diagnosis was made in 22 165 discharges, of which 90 (0.4%) received TPE. Corresponding national estimates are 106 435 and 439, respectively. TPE was not associated with decreased in-hospital mortality (OR = 1.72; 95%CI: 0.93-3.17, P = .085). However, TPE was associated with a higher likelihood of major bleeding (OR = 2.35; 95%CI: 1.40-3.68, P = .0009), primarily driven by gastrointestinal bleeding (OR = 2.21; 95%CI: 1.17-4.17, P = .015). TPE was also associated with higher hospital LOS (20.5 vs 10 day, P < .0001) and charges (USD 211181 vs USD 81654, P < .0001). CONCLUSION: TPE's association with increased bleeding and a prolonged hospital course indicates that it is being used in HIT cases with a severe clinical phenotype. Future studies are needed to better characterize the HIT phenotype that will most benefit from TPE.

Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid analysis and mortality risk in systemic lupus erythematosus patients with pneumonia and respiratory failure.

BACKGROUND: Our aim was to characterize etiologic diagnoses obtained from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and blood specimens, and to identify risk factors for mortality in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with pneumonia and respiratory failure. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of SLE patients with pneumonia and respiratory failure. Clinical characteristics, laboratory profiles, and microbiology in BALF and blood samples were evaluated. We performed univariable analyses to identify mortality risk factors. RESULTS: All 24 patients (F:M = 21:3, median age 46.5 years; disease duration 11 years) received mechanical ventilation (median duration: 11 days). Pathogens identified in BALF included Pneumocystis jiroveci (12 patients [50%]), cytomegalovirus (CMV, 7 patients [29.2%]), and bacteria (11 patients [45.8%]). Thirteen patients (54.2%) yielded pathogens in blood (CMV in 8 patients [33.3%] and Escherichia coli in 5 patients [20.8%]). Eight developed septic shock, and 9 died within 30 days. Univariable analysis identified thrombocytopenia (odds ratio [OR]: 8.0, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.23-52.25), bacteremia within 30 days before or after endotracheal intubation (OR: 8.0, 95% CI: 1.23-52.5), and P. jiroveci pneumonia (PJP, OR: 7.0, 95% CI: 1.04-46.95) as risk factors for 30-day mortality. Kaplan-Meier analysis confirmed an increased risk of 30-day mortality with thrombocytopenia and bacteremia. CONCLUSION: There are high prevalence rates of PJP and CMV infections as evidenced by BALF analyses in SLE patients with pneumonia and respiratory failure. BALF analysis can facilitate rescue therapy per pathogen. Thrombocytopenia, bacteremia, and PJP in SLE patients can increase their 30-day mortality, so warrant early and aggressive treatments.

Thrombocytopenia Is Associated with COVID-19 Severity and Outcome: An Updated Meta-Analysis of 5637 Patients with Multiple Outcomes.

The COVID-19 pandemic is persistent worldwide. A prior meta-analysis suggested the association of thrombocytopenia (TCP) with more severe COVID-19 illness and high mortality. Considering newly published studies, we updated the previous meta-analysis to confirm and explain the association of TCP with COVID-19 severity and multiple outcomes. Twenty-four studies with 5637 patients with COVID-19 were included in this study. The weighted incidence of TCP in COVID-19 was 12.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7.9%-17.7%). Data synthesis showed that the platelet number was lower in patients with either more severe illness or poor outcomes and even lower in nonsurvivors, with weighted mean differences of -24.56 × 109/L, -22.48 × 109/L, and -49.02 × 109/L, respectively. The meta-analysis of binary outcomes (with and without TCP) indicated the association between TCP and 3-fold enhanced risk of a composite outcome of intensive care unit admission, progression to acute respiratory distress syndrome, and mortality (odds ratio [OR], 3.49; 95% CI, 1.57-7.78). Subgroup analysis by endpoint events suggested TCP to be significantly associated with mortality (OR, 7.37; 95% CI, 2.08-26.14). Overall, the present comprehensive meta-analysis indicated that approximately 12% of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 have TCP, which also represents a sign of more severe illness and poor outcomes.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Haematologist's Perspective.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is affecting millions of patients worldwide. It is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which belongs to the family Coronaviridae, with 80% genomic similarities to SARS-CoV. Lymphopenia was commonly seen in infected patients and has a correlation to disease severity. Thrombocytopenia, coagulation abnormalities, and disseminated intravascular coagulation were observed in COVID-19 patients, especially those with critical illness and non-survivors. This pandemic has caused disruption in communities and hospital services, as well as straining blood product supply, affecting chemotherapy treatment and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation schedule. In this article, we review the haematological manifestations of the disease and its implication on the management of patients with haematological disorders.

Predicting 2-Day Mortality of Thrombocytopenic Patients Based on Clinical Laboratory Data Using Machine Learning.

BACKGROUND: Clinical laboratories have traditionally used a single critical value for thrombocytopenic events. This system, however, could lead to inaccuracies and inefficiencies, causing alarm fatigue and compromised patient safety. OBJECTIVES: This study shows how machine learning (ML) models can provide auxiliary information for more accurate identification of critical thrombocytopenic patients when compared with the traditional notification system. RESEARCH DESIGN: A total of 50,505 patients' platelet count and other 26 additional laboratory datasets of each thrombocytopenic event were used to build prediction models. Conventional logistic regression and ML methods, including random forest (RF), artificial neural network, stochastic gradient descent (SGD), naive Bayes, support vector machine, and decision tree, were applied to build different models and evaluated. RESULTS: Models using logistic regression [area under the curve (AUC)=0.842], RF (AUC=0.859), artificial neural network (AUC=0.867), or SGD (AUC=0.826) achieved the desired average AUC>0.80. The highest positive predictive value was obtained by the SGD model in the testing data (72.2%), whereas overall, the RF model showed higher sensitivity and total positive predictions in both the training and testing data and outperformed other models. The positive 2-day mortality predictive rate of RF methods is as high as 46.1%-significantly higher than using the traditional notification system at only 14.8% [χ2(1)=81.66, P<0.001]. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates a data-driven ML approach showing a significantly more accurate 2-day mortality prediction after a critical thrombocytopenic event, which can reinforce the accuracy of the traditional notification system.

Evaluation of Acquired Thrombocytopenia According to the Balloon-Expandable Versus Self-Expandable Valves in Patients Undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

In patients with severe aortic stenosis, the data about the incidence of acquired thrombocytopenia according to the use of balloon-expandable or self-expandable valves are limited. We investigated the relationship between the post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) thrombocytopenia and the balloon-expandable or self-expandable valves. A total of 127 consecutive patients who underwent TAVR were retrospectively analyzed. Among the study population, 61 (48%) patients underwent TAVR with the balloon-expandable valve and the 66 (52%) patients with the self-expandable valve. Procedural success did not differ between the groups (P = .575). The access site complications and in-hospital mortality were the same across the groups (P = .225 and P = .466). However, paravalvular (PV) leaks were significantly higher in the self-expandable valve group (P = .007). Among all, 65 patients experienced thrombocytopenia, which was more frequent in the self-expandable valve group (63.6 vs 37.7%, P = .005). In multivariate analyses, admission platelet count, PV leak, and self-expandable valve deployment were the predictors of thrombocytopenia (P = .001, P = .002, and P = .021, respectively). The present study showed a higher incidence of acquired thrombocytopenia in the self-expandable valve group. Although the procedural success was similar between the groups, postprocedural PV leaks were more common in the self-expandable valve group.

Outcomes With Heparin-Induced Thrombocytopenia After Cardiac Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is an immune-mediated reaction to heparin that provokes a prothrombotic state and causes a decline in platelet count. Data describing outcomes of HIT after cardiac surgery are limited. This study sought to determine the impact of HIT on short-term outcomes after cardiac surgery. METHODS: This was an observational study of cardiac surgeries from 2010 to 2018. Patients with HIT were matched against patients without HIT using 2:1 nearest-neighbor propensity matching. Matching was performed to assess the impact of HIT on operative mortality (The Society of Thoracic Surgeons definition) and thromboembolic events (including deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, stroke, and/or acute limb ischemia), which were the primary outcomes of interest. RESULTS: Of 11,820 patients undergoing a Society of Thoracic Surgeons indexed cardiac surgery, 131 (1.1%) developed HIT after their index operation. After matching operative mortality was 21.8% in HIT patients compared with 5.3% in non-HIT patients. Thromboembolic events occurred in 29.1% of HIT patients compared with 2.9% in non-HIT patients. On subanalysis operative mortality was significantly higher for the HIT group without thromboembolic events (16.7%) and the HIT group with thromboembolic events (34.4%) compared with the non-HIT group (5.3%). However operative mortality was not significantly higher in the HIT group with thromboembolic events compared with the HIT group without thromboembolic events, after Bonferroni correction. CONCLUSIONS: Although uncommon, HIT is a highly morbid and potentially lethal complication, which should reinforce the importance of timely recognition and treatment of this adverse outcome.

Correlation between thrombocytopenia and host response in severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome.

Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease caused by a novel bunyavirus, SFTS virus (SFTSV), with fatal outcome developed in approximately 17% of the cases. Thrombocytopenia is a hallmark feature of SFTS, and associated with a higher risk of fatal outcome, however, the pathophysiological involvement of platelet in the clinical outcome of SFTS remained under-investigated. In the current study, by retrospectively analyzing 1538 confirmed SFTS patients, we observed that thrombocytopenia was associated with enhanced activation of the cytokine network and the vascular endothelium, also with a disturbed coagulation response. The platelet phenotypes were also extensively altered in the process of thrombocytopenia development of SFTS patients. More importantly, all these disturbed host responses were related to the severity of thrombocytopenia, thus were considered to play in a synergistic way to influence the disease outcome. Moreover, the clinical effect of platelet transfusion was assessed by comparing two groups of patients with or without receiving this therapy. As a result, we observed no therapy effect in altering frequencies of fatal outcome, clinical bleeding development, or dynamic change of platelet count during the hospitalization. It's suggested that platelet supplementation alone acted a minor role in improving disease outcome, therefore new therapeutic intervention to regulate host response should be proposed. The current results revealed some evidence of interrelationship between platelet count and clinical outcome of SFTS disease from the perspective of activation of the cytokine network, the vascular endothelium, and the coagulation/fibrinolysis system. These evaluations might help to attain a better understanding of the pathogenesis and therapy choice in SFTS.

Clinical Implications of Thrombocytopenia at Cardiogenic Shock Presentation: Data from a Multicenter Registry.

PURPOSE: Thrombocytopenia (platelet count <150×10³/µL) is associated with poor outcomes in various critical illness settings. However, the prognostic value of platelet count in patients with cardiogenic shock (CS) remains unclear. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 1202 patients between January 2014 and December 2018 from a multicenter retrospective-prospective cohort registry of CS. Clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes were compared between the patients with and without thrombocytopenia. RESULTS: At presentation with CS, 244 (20.3%) patients had thrombocytopenia. The patients with thrombocytopenia had lower blood pressure, hemoglobin level, and worse liver and renal functions compared to the patients without. During hospitalization, the patients with thrombocytopenia had more frequent gastrointestinal bleeding (10.5% vs. 3.8%, p=0.009), sepsis (8.3% vs. 2.6%, p=0.013), requirement of renal replacement therapy (36.5% vs. 18.9%, p<0.001), requirement of mechanical ventilation (65.2% vs. 54.4%, p=0.003), longer intensive care unit stay (8 days vs. 4 days, p<0.001), and thirty-day mortality (40.2% vs. 28.5%, p<0.001) compared to those without. In addition, the platelet count was an independent predictor of 30-day mortality (per 103/µL decrease; adjusted hazard ratio: 1.002, 95% confidence interval: 1.000-1.003, p=0.021). CONCLUSION: Thrombocytopenia at CS presentation was associated with worse clinical findings, higher frequencies of complications, and longer stay at the intensive care unit. Also, thrombocytopenia was independently associated with increased 30-day mortality. (Clinical trial registration No. NCT02985008).