Background and purpose: Coated-platelets are a subset of platelets with high procoagulant potential observed on dual agonist stimulation with collagen and thrombin. Failure to produce coated-platelets in animals results in a bleeding diathesis. With this background, we undertook a pilot study to investigate coated-platelet production in patients with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (SICH).
Methods: Coated-platelet levels were determined in 26 patients with a diagnosis of SICH and 52 controls.
Results: The patient population had significantly lower coated-platelet levels than the controls (mean+/-SD, 24.8+/-9.7% versus 32.9+/-12.6%, P=0.0035).
Conclusions: Decreased coated-platelet synthesis may be linked to the mechanisms involved in the events leading to SICH.