What can prolonged treatment of chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura lead to?

In chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), the body erroneously produces antibodies against platelets, leading to decreased platelet counts and an increased risk of bleeding. When first-line treatments, such as corticosteroids or immune globulins, are ineffective or if the condition persists, a splenectomy can be considered. The spleen plays a central role in the destruction of platelets, and removing it can significantly increase platelet counts and reduce bleeding complications.

Splenectomy is often pursued in chronic cases where patients are symptomatic or have severely low platelet counts that do not respond to medical management. This surgical intervention directly targets the underlying problem of platelet destruction by eliminating the organ responsible for this process.

While prolonged treatment of ITP can have other complications or outcomes, such as potential side effects from medications like bone marrow depression or hepatotoxicity associated with certain drugs, these are less directly linked to the chronic nature of the disease and its management compared to the definitive approach of splenectomy. Therefore, splenectomy is the most relevant and direct consequence of prolonged treatment in cases of chronic ITP.