This e-newsletter is a bi-weekly publication of The Platelet Disorder Support Association. The information in this newsletter is for educational purposes only. For advice on your unique medical condition, please consult a health care professional. Contents:
SPRING CLEANINGSpring is a great time to clean out the toxins your body has accumulated during the winter. According to Ayurvedic medicine, a long-standing system of medicine from India, toxins, called ama, accumulate in your body from incomplete digestion and exposure to environmental toxins such as pesticides and household chemicals. If you wake up in the morning and your tongue is coated, if you feel dull and sleepy after eating, if your mind is foggy, or if you have a heavy feeling in your body you may have a build-up of toxins. These toxins can manifest in a variety of symptoms such as fatigue, joint pain, frequent colds, and other ailments. There are many ways to rid your body of ama. One way is to eat an ama-reducing diet of warm, freshly-cooked whole foods. Cooked leafy greens such as kale and chard are very good at helping the body detoxify. The information in this article was taken from “Taking Care of Toxins” in the February 2002 special edition of the “Total Health News”. You can view the entire article on-line at http://www.mapi.com RECENT ABSTRACTSWe scan each issue of the journal “blood” for platelet articles that might interest our readers. In the March 15 issue there were three…a record. You can read the text of the abstracts free or purchase the articles at http://www.bloodjournal.org/. Just enter the volume number and beginning page into the search boxes. Using Anti-D to avoid Splenectomy Twenty-eight non-splenectomized ITP patients were given repeated doses of Anti-D (WinRho) to determine if the treatment could help these patients sufficiently stabilize their counts and avoid splenectomy. The authors concluded that Anti-D was an effective maintenance treatment for two-thirds of the patients who failed an initial course of steroids and allowed 40% of the adults avoid splenectomy and achieve stable platelet counts off all therapy. Vol. 99 p. 1922. Vitamin A and Thrombocytopenia An infant, given 62,000 IU/day of vitamin A, 41 times the recommended daily allowance in the first year of life, developed severe anemia and thrombocytopenia. When the vitamin A was interrupted the infant recovered. The authors investigated the interaction between the high dose of vitamin A and bone marrow and concluded that the resultant anemia and thrombocytopenia were due to the direct effect of the molecule on the bone marrow components. Vol. 99 p. 2017. Abciximab and Thrombocytopenia Abciximab, a monoclonal antibody often given to heart patients to prevent blood clots, causes thrombocytopenia in 1% - 2% of the patients. The authors found that the patients who developed thrombocytopenia had existing antibodies that made them more susceptible. They concluded that it may be possible to identify patients who were at risk by screening for antibodies that recognize 7E3-coated platelets. Vol. 00 p. 2054. SAN DIEGO DISCOUNTSThinking about coming to our ITP conference in San Diego, June 21-23, 2002? We found great discount airline tickets at www.orbitz.com. Other travel sites are www.trip.com, www.travelocity.com and www.expedia.com. Or try southwest airlines www.southwest.com, known for their low rates. You can get discount tickets to some of San Diego’s finest attractions at Here’s what others are saying about this great city.
For more information on our conference and to register go to http://www.pdsa.org/conference.htm. Register before April 15 and save $10. PLATELET TIPSParsley is considered by many to be good for the liver, an organ sometimes implicated in ITP. I juice two bunches of parsley at a time and drink a mug of juice a day. Sometimes I mix it with other fruits or vegetables. Peter (PA) Remember to add something fun to do every day. Practice being creative every day. Amy (NJ) For information on advertising in our e-news letter contact us at pdsa@pdsa.org. This e-newsletter is published by the Platelet Disorder Support Association, P.O. Box 61533, Potomac, MD, 20859, phone/fax: 1-87-Platelet or (301) 294-5967, web: http://www.pdsa.org/, e-mail: pdsa@pdsa.org |