Mean platelet volume (MPV) has been associated with deep vein thrombosis (DVT), but it also appears to be a potential predictor of the presence of pulmonary embolism (PE), according to a retrospective analysis of patients reported by Dr. Atilla Icli of Ahi Evran University, Kirsehir, Turkey, and his colleagues.
The researchers assessed three groups of patients among those admitted to the emergency department or outpatient clinic of two university hospitals during 2005-2014. The patient study groups consisted of 98 patients with DVT and PE (48 men; mean age, 56.8 years); 97 patients with DVT without PE (48 men; mean age, 54.2 years); and 98 patients admitted with suspicion of DVT, but confirmed to be free of DVT and PE (45 men; mean age, 55.0 years) (Heart Lung Circulation. 2015 Nov;24[11]:1081-6).
Courtesy Wikimedia Commons/Walter Serra, Giuseppe De Iaco, Claudio Reverberi and Tiziano Gherli/Creative Commons License
Pulmonary embolism is shown here.
There were no statistically significant differences between the groups with regard to sex, age, body mass index, or comorbidities such as hypertension or diabetes. Blood samples were drawn from all patients and assessed for MPV.
MPV was significantly higher in all DVT patients than controls (9.3 femtoliter vs. 7.9 fL; P less than .001) and in DVT patients with PE as compared to DVT patients without PE (9.9 fL vs. 8.7 fL, respectively; P less than .001). A cut-off point was seen where the rate of PE was significantly higher in patients with MPV greater than 9.15 fL, as compared with those with MPV equal to or below 9.15 fL. In addition, the presence of PE in patients with DVT was independently associated with MPV (odds ratio, 22.2; P less than .001).
“Our findings suggest that MPVs are elevated in patients with DVT, and higher MPVs may be associated with this group of patients,” Dr. Icli and his colleagues concluded.
The authors indicated that they had no relevant conflicts.
Read the full study online in Heart, Lung and Circulation.