Summary
The mean platelet volume, measured optically and by the electrical impedance method,
was analysed in the patients with chronic renal failure. All parameters describing
the circulating platelet biomass except the platelet volume heterogeneity were decreased
in these patients. There is a strong inverse relation between the Ivy bleeding time
and the platelet mass in the patient group.
Our results indicate that the smaller platelets circulating in the patients with chronic
renal failure may contribute to the uremic bleeding diathesis, and disturbed thrombocytopoiesis
occurs in chronic renal failure.