Petechial rash

[katheriner]

Hi I am a recovering (or so I thought) panic and anxiety sufferer and have posted here in the past, but not for a while.

On Friday I woke up with small pinprick size purple dots on my chest - only about 10 - I went to my Doctor and he says it's called a petechial rash and has sent me for a blood test (which I had today). Apparently the rash is caused by tiny blood vessels bleeding under the skin.

I'm really scared there could be something seriously wrong - eg leukaemia or other blood disorder. Am so scared and have to wait 5 days for the results.
Really want to find some more info about this, but have tried googling and it's all very scary so I made myself close the browser v quickly.

Has anyone had this / know anything about this?

Thank you

Katherine

[Lissy43]

DO NOT GOOGLE because yes leukamia and alsorts will come up.

I get this quite often. At the moment im bruising and have the petechial rash in places, always worries me aswell but my bloods 4 weeks ago were fine.

When do you get your results? id say he is just ruling out a blood disorder not leaukemia because you would be very poorly and have the other symptoms.

[katheriner]

Thanks, that's reassuring that you have had this, but have your bloods all came back clear.
Not sure when I get the result - think it takes at least 5 days so will try ringing Drs on Fri.

[syl]

Hi katheriner
I have had this for over 15 years it is nothing to worry about
I agree with cherry doctor is only doing blood test to check things are ok
you should get results back in 4 -6 days
try not to worry I am sure you will be ok If i was to sit and check my skin i would find loads of these spots just try to close my eyes to them

[Lissy43]

Yes my bloods are done every 3 months, I last had mine done 5 weeks ago and they were fine but im still getting this rash, I even have it in my mouth at the moment and my son always gets it in his mouth and he had his bloods done last summer and they were fine.

I get my results back alot quicker than that, they say 5 days but I always ring after 24 hours and mine are back. I would ring just to see, you never know. Let us know.

[katheriner]

Oh God - this morning I noticed I had a few more petechiae. The other ones that I had on Friday have faded now though.
I plucked up the courage to call the Drs to see if my results were in - they said they had arrived this morning, but the Dr hasn't checked them yet, so to ring back this afternoon! What does that mean? I didn't think I would be allowed to have the results on the phone - is this normal? I am still really worried. I had calmed down a lot but since finding some more petechiae I am really panicking and thinking the worst. Had a bad PA this morning and that's the first time in months.
Katherine
x

[katheriner]

Just got my test results over the phone
full blood count - normal
plasma - normal
glucose - normal
coagulation - normal
But she said there was no result for the lipids, thyroid and serum/creatine tests. I'm confused on which tests I had now, as they sounded different to the list of results I got! The list of tests included things like U&E, LFT whatever they are.
She said I could discuss this with the Dr but appointment not till Wednesday. I don't really know what this means - whether she can't tell me because there's something wrong with me, or just that the result didn't come through. Why would there be no result for some of the tests?
I'm relieved the full blood count and the coagulation tests are OK - that rules out leukaemia and other blood disorders I think... but now I'm worried it could be something else wrong. Does high Creatine means there could be a kidney problem?
I am also driving myself mad checking for more petechiae - have found a few more odd ones so far.
Katherine

[lass]

I would imagine that they have not finished testing your bloods, and that the other results will follow in the next few days. If there was anything wrong they would call you in sooner than next Wednesday. Also if they didn't have enough blood to test for the other things then they'd get you back to take more bloods. So I really think you will get your other results at some stage.

U&E is urea and electrolytes - this is kidney function and would include creatinine. LFT is liver function tests. Lipids is your cholesterol.

Where I work, the haematology results are printed in one report (this is your full blood count etc), biochemistry is printed out as another report (this is kidney function, liver function, lipid profile etc), thyroid as another, etc.

So, as I say, I don't imagine there is anything for you to be concerned about - and if there was anything wrong in the blood results your GP would contact you or get you to come in so that they could start investigating further.

Great news that your other results have come back ok.

[eeyorelover]

If your blood count was okay then it is REALLY REALLY unlikely that it is anything serious:yesyes:

Glad to hear that you got some test results back :flowers:

If you need to gab you know you can pm me and I'll be here hun:hugs:
xxx
Sandy

[Lissy43]

DId you get the other results back?

[Blackstar]

Hi Katherine/all,

I know this is a fairly old post but it interested me and I have some experience in this area!

I went to my GP last March with a petechial rash on my thighs, shins, and the insides of my forearms. GP sent my bloods off for a full blood count (to rule out anaemia, low platelets, low white blood cells etc), which came back normal. I was referred to a dermatologist who said it was a benign condition where your capillaries become 'leaky' - red blood cells leak out and cause iron deposits under the skin, which are the pinpricks you see.

Mine is a long-term condition known as progressive purpuric dermatosis/Schamberg's disease, but petechiae can also be caused by pressing hard on the skin (bruising) and by fluctuations in hormone levels. Indeed, my petechial rash gets worse just before my period so is likely related to the effect of hormones on the capillary walls. Stress hormones such as cortisol probably also have a marked effect on capillary fragility.

Anyway, I digress. I just wanted to say that if you blood count was normal and you are otherwise well, there is probably absolutely nothing to worry about. Even if it is Schamberg's it's totally harmless and a bit of fake tan helps!

Incidentally I am an ex-sufferer of an overactive thyroid (I was successfully treated and now take Thyroxine) and that never caused petechiae for me.

I hope this is helpful. Feel free to message me if you need any more info or support.

I'll bet your recent silence means that your other tests came back normal - I do hope so.

Best wishes.

x