Management of chronic liver disease-associated severe thrombocytopenia in Spain: a view from the experts

• José Luis Calleja-Panero ^[1] ; Raúl J. Andrade ^[2] ; Rafael Bañares ^[3] ; Javier Crespo ^[5] ; Rafael Esteban ^[6] ; Isidro Jarque ^[4] ; María Eva Mingot-Castellano ^[4] ; Manuel Romero-Gómez ^[4] ; Rocío Muñoz-Peñín ^[7] ; Roy Bentley ^[8] ; John Shepherd ^[9] ; Alicia Gil Aguirre ^[9]
  1. [1] Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro

     Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro

     Madrid, España

     
  2. [2] Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Victoria

     Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Victoria

     Málaga, España

     
  3. [3] Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón

     Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón

     Madrid, España

     
  4. [4] Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío

     Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío

     Sevilla, España

     
  5. [5] Hospital Universitario Vall d’Hebron. Barcelona, Spain
  6. [6] Hospital Universitari i Politècnic La Fe. Valencia
  7. [7] Shionogi Inc. Madrid, Spain
  8. [8] Shionogi Inc. Florham Park. New Jersey, USA
  9. [9] Omakase Consulting S.L. Barcelona, Spain

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• Localización: Revista Española de Enfermedades Digestivas, ISSN-e 2340-4167, ISSN 1130-0108, Vol. 112, Nº. 10, 2020, págs. 778-783
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Background: chronic liver disease (CLD) patients often present thrombocytopenia (TCP) and when severe, it may prevent them from undergoing necessary invasive procedures due to an increased bleeding risk. The lack of scientific evidence makes it impossible to determine key aspects of the current management and associated healthcare burden of these patients in Spain. Purpose: to gain insight into the current situation of patients with CLD-associated severe TCP undergoing invasive procedures in Spain, based on the experience of clinical experts. Methods: national Delphi study involving 32 medical experts. Results: the estimated prevalence of CLD-associated severe TCP is approximately 5,967, with an annual incidence of 1,148 new patients. Patients undergo a median of 1 (0-3) invasive procedures/year. Platelet transfusions (PTs) are the standard option to raise platelet counts and are associated with significant burden. The achievement of target platelet levels (≥ 50 x 109/l) after a transfusion is not routinely measured. The lack of effectiveness and short life span of transfused platelets can lead to procedure cancellations and bleeding events, which potentially affect patient outcomes. Adverse events occur in 1-25 % of patients, including mild (febrile and allergic reactions) and severe events (e.g., transfusion-related acute lung injury). Between 5-15 % of patients are unfit to receive PTs and approximately 3 % are treated off-label with thrombopoietin receptor agonists. Conclusions: this study provides a snapshot of the current situation in Spain, highlighting that the current management is poorly standardized and suboptimal in some cases. The results suggest the benefit of developing a consensus document to address some of these shortcomings and to advance in the search for alternatives to PTs.