Can I have a child if I have low platelets?

An anime called "Cells at Work!" that has been flooding the circle of friends recently has attracted people's attention. The platelets in the play have won the love of many people with their cute image. In our body, platelets have the function of hemostasis and blood coagulation. The number of platelets in each person's body is different. Some people have low platelet counts, while others have high platelet counts. So, can people with low platelet counts have children?

It is not recommended to have a baby when the platelet count is too low, because if the platelet count is too low and the coagulation factor is poor, having a baby may be life-threatening due to continuous bleeding. Under normal circumstances, the platelet count must be maintained at at least 80 before considering having a baby to avoid causing serious damage to yourself and your child.

If a woman has a low platelet count during pregnancy, not only may she experience excessive bleeding during delivery, affecting her health and life, but it will also have varying degrees of impact on the fetus and newborn.

If an expectant mother suffers from essential thrombocytopenia, her body may produce "anti-platelet antibodies". These antibodies can enter the fetus through the placenta and destroy the fetus's platelets, leading to serious consequences such as intracranial hemorrhage in the fetus. This antibody can enter the baby's body through breast milk and cause the baby to have bleeding tendency. The abortion rate of this disease is 10% to 30%. In recent years, due to the improvement of treatment methods, the abortion rate has dropped significantly. The bleeding rate during delivery in pregnant women with thrombocytopenia is about 5% to 8%, and the mortality rate from bleeding is about 1%.

Thrombocytopenia can pose a great danger to mother and baby. Due to the low platelet count, pregnant women have a tendency to bleed, and are prone to miscarriage, early placental abruption, and intrauterine fetal death during pregnancy. During delivery, birth canal injury, bleeding, and hematoma formation are likely to occur. The postpartum hemorrhage rate is 5 times higher than that of normal pregnancy. In severe cases, intracranial hemorrhage and death may occur. Therefore, patients with thrombocytopenia should try to avoid pregnancy.