Tourneux P, Jouvencel P, Micheau M, Jouvencel A C, Chateil J F, Barba G, Letavernier B, Llanas B
Service de médecine néonatale et réanimation pédiatrique polyvalente, CHU d'Amiens, hôpital Nord, 1, place Victor-Pauchet, 80054 Amiens cedex 1, France.
Arch Pediatr. 2005 Mar;12(3):281-3. doi: 10.1016/j.arcped.2004.11.017.
Severe hemorrhage complications are rare in idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. This pathology is often considered as benign.
We report the case of a four-year-old boy presenting a parvovirus B19 idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. Despite early and repeated use of intravenous immunoglobulin, the evolution was characterized by the secondary apparition of a cerebral hemorrhage. It was lethal seven days after the initial diagnosis.
Parvovirus B19 should be investigated as an etiologic agent of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, using PCR. The unpredictive aspect of severe hemorrhage complications, especially cerebral hemorrhages, explains the potential severity of this disease.
