JOMPAC
Journal of Medicine and Palliative Care

Journal of Medicine and Palliative Care (JOMPAC) is an open access scientific journal with independent, unbiased, and double-blind review under international guidelines. The purpose of JOMPAC is to contribute to the literature by publishing articles on health sciences and medicine.

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Original Article
Platelet indices: a new tool for monitoring infantile hemangioma treatment
Abstract
Aims: Infantile hemangioma (IH) is the most common benign vascular tumor in childhood. Diagnosis, treatment decision-making, and monitoring of the treatment are challenging. This study aims to investigate the utilization of platelet (PLT) indices as a marker in the follow-up of IH treatment.
Methods: The patients who were admitted and followed up in the outpatient clinic of Erciyes University Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology were enrolled in the study. The demographical data, treatment results, and PLT indices of the patients at certain time points were analyzed retrospectively. PLT, mean platelet volume (MPV), and platelet distribution width (PDW) were measured at various time points: upon admission, after the first and second months of treatment, at treatment completion, and during rebound episodes in affected patients.
Results: A general decrease in PLT, PDW, and MPV values was noted when comparing admission levels to the first month of treatment. The mean PLT count was 452.680/mm3 at admission, it decreased to 405.900/mm3 at the 1st month, 376.600/mm3 at the 2nd month and 359.900/mm3 at the end of treatment (p: 0,002). Besides MPV was evaluated, it was observed that while the mean was 10.43 fl at the time of admission, it decreased to 9.51 fl in the following months and the decline was statistically significant with a p value of 0,031. Lastly, regarding the mean PDW values, a decline was detected once again from 11.34 % to 10.2 % between the admission time and termination of the treatment with a statistically significant p value of <0.001.
Conclusion: Up to 15% of IH patients may require treatment due to complications. This study highlights that PLT, PDW, and MPV values can serve as valuable biomarkers for assessing treatment response and guiding clinical decision-making.

Keywords : Infantile hemangioma, platelet indices, propranolol treatment

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Article available in :
Volume 6, Issue 2, 2025
Page : 105-109
https://doi.org/10.47582/jompac.1643407
Article Information
Received : 20 Şub 2025
Accepted : 10 Mar 2025
Published : 23 Mar 2025
Corresponding Author :

Ekrem Ünal: Department of Pediatric Hematology, Medical Point Gaziantep Hospital, Gaziantep, Türkiye

drekremunal@yahoo.com.tr
Citation : Akyol Ş, Koçak Göl D, Özcan A, et al. Platelet indices: a new tool for monitoring infantile hemangioma treatment. J Med Palliat Care. 2025;6(2):105-109.

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