Pharmacological control of platelet-vessel wall interactions in patients with chronic obstructive airway disease.

In the last few years great interest has been devoted to the role of platelet activation in the haemodynamic and thrombotic complications which frequently occur in patients with chronic obstructive airway disease. Several recent studies have shown, in fact, a number of alterations of platelet function in this pathological condition, such as an increased betathromboglobulin level and higher levels of malondialdehyde after collagen and thrombin platelet stimulation compared to age and sex matched control subjects. Our study indicates that the platelet regeneration time is shortened in patients with chronic obstructive airway disease in respect to that of controls (p less than 0.001). The administration of dipyridamole (425 mg/die) resulted in a significant prolongation of the platelet regeneration time in these patients indicating that the drug was effective in reducing the increased platelet turnover.