Thrombocytopaenia is a condition of abnormally low platelets that often occurs during necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)—a serious illness in infants that can cause tissue damage to the intestines.

Ragazzi et al. (A-8) investigated differences in the log10 of platelet counts in 178 infants with NEC.

Patients were grouped into four categories of NEC status. Group 0 referred to infants with no gangrene, group 1 referred to subjects in whom gangrene was limited to a single intestinal segment, group 2 referred to patients with two or more intestinal segments of gangrene, and group 3 referred to patients with the majority of small and large bowel involved. The following table gives the log10 platelet counts for these subjects.

Gangrene Grouping 0 1 23 1.97 2.33 2.48 1.38 2.45 1.87 2.37 1.77 0.85 2.60 2.23 1.86 2.60 1.90 1.75 1.68 1.79 1.88 2.51 2.26 1.83 2.43 2.57 1.46 2.30 2.33 2.38 1.99 2.47 1.32 1.51 1.53 1.71 2.48 2.31 1.32 1.92 2.06 1.08 1.36 2.66 2.15 2.08 2.11 2.51 1.04 2.36 1.65 2.49 1.41 2.49 2.54 1.79 1.99 1.58 2.12 2.37 2.03 2.21 2.06 2.17 1.52 1.83 1.73 1.81 2.59 2.45 2.41 2.18 1.99 2.55 1.91 2.51 2.23 1.96 2.23 2.53 2.52 1.80 1.57 2.38 1.61 2.29 2.00 1.98 1.93 2.44 2.27 2.58 1.86 2.54 2.74 1.93 2.29 2.81 1.00 2.58 2.33 2.23 2.00 2.42 1.75 2.17 1.81 2.84 2.34 2.78 2.51 0.79 2.16 2.72 2.27 2.55 1.38 2.36 2.08 1.38 1.81 2.44 2.43 1.90 2.52 1.89 2.46 1.98 1.74 2.28 2.35 2.26 1.66 1.57 1.60 2.33 2.63 1.79 2.51 2.05 2.08 1.77 2.03 1.87 1.76 2.30 2.34 1.83 1.08 2.51 1.72 1.36 1.89 1.67 2.40 2.29 2.57 2.48 1.75 2.67 1.77 2.38 2.30 1.40 1.69