Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29438423›Full record

ArticlePloS one2018

Immature platelet fraction and thrombopoietin in patients with liver cirrhosis: A cohort study.

Philip Rauber, Frank Lammert, Katharina Grotemeyer, Beate Appenrodt

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Intrahepatic Platelets Orchestrate Microenvironmental Remodelling and Cellular Crosstalk in Liver Fibrosis.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Hematological abnormalities in liver cirrhosis.World journal of hepatology · 2024
    Review
  5. Thrombocytopenia and liver disease: pathophysiology and periprocedural management.Hematology. American Society of Hematology. Education Program · 2022
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Platelets as a Gauge of Liver Disease Kinetics?International journal of molecular sciences · 2022
    Review
  8. Platelet Subtypes in Inflammatory Settings.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2022
    Review
  9. Review
  10. Clinical Implications of Thrombocytopenia for the Cirrhotic Patient.Hepatic medicine : evidence and research · 2020
    Review
  11. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Philip RauberDepartment of Neurology, Saarland University Medical Center, Homburg/Saar, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-7476-9520
Frank LammertDepartment of Medicine II, Saarland University Medical Center, Homburg/Saar, Germany.
Katharina GrotemeyerDepartment of Medicine II, Saarland University Medical Center, Homburg/Saar, Germany.
Beate AppenrodtDepartment of Medicine II, Saarland University Medical Center, Homburg/Saar, Germany.
Saarland University · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimsThrombocytopenia occurs frequently in patients with cirrhosis. The immature platelet fraction (IPF%) is measured to differentiate the causes of thrombocytopenia. To date the relevance of thrombopoietin (TPO) in the context of cirrhosis is unknown. The aim of our study was to investigate the cause of thrombocytopenia in patients with liver cirrhosis by measuring IPF%, TPO and spleen size. In addition we examined the use of IPF% to evaluate the severity of cirrhosis and its complications.

methodsOverall, we included 88 in-patients with cirrhosis in our study. The collected data comprises current health status, blood parameters, severity of cirrhosis evaluated by Child-Pugh score and MELD score, spleen diameter, ascites and esophageal varices. The IPF% was measured using an automatic hematology analyzer. TPO was measured with ELISA.

resultsIPF% (p = 0.003) and spleen diameter (p = 0.001) were significantly higher in patients with thrombocytopenia. There was no significant difference in TPO between patients with and without thrombocytopenia. The mean values of IPF% varied significantly (p = 0.044) in Child-Pugh stages. IPF% was significantly (p = 0.005) elevated in patients with esophageal varices. Moreover, IPF% higher than 3.85% displayed sensitivity of 76.6% and specificity of 52.4% with an area under receiver operating curve characteristics of 0.669 for the presence of esophageal varices.

conclusionOn closer examination of the three compartments known to have an influence on platelet count splenomegaly seems to be the major cause of thrombocytopenia in patients with cirrhosis according to current knowledge. Higher IPF% in patients with thrombocytopenia indicates peripheral consumption of platelets. The relation between spleen diameter and platelet count indicates the spleen to be the major place of platelets' consumption. TPO did not differ between patients with and without thrombocytopenia. Furthermore, we cannot exclude an influence of impaired thrombopoietin synthesis on platelet counts. The association between IPF% and platelet count suggests that there is physiological regulation of platelets in patients with cirrhosis. In our study IPF% is associated with esophageal varices and the stage of cirrhosis. Further studies are needed to confirm these results.

Indexed as

Platelet CountAgedCohort StudiesFemaleHumansLiver CirrhosisMaleMiddle AgedThrombopoietinThrombopoietin

Identifiers

PMID29438423
PMCPMC5810997
OpenAlexW2791880342

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.