![]() The bacteria latch on to the endothelial lining of blood vessels and activate the immune system, causing huge inflammation and massive leakage of vascular contents. Although far more common in tropical countries than in North America, when meningococcal septicaemia does occur, it carries a high mortality-largely because it is not recognized until it’s too late. The first of these is purpura fulminans, a rare and severe complication of meningococcal septicaemia which is caused by Neisseria meningitidis. Hay outlined some potentially life-threatening conditions in which purpura is involved and which are often related to infections. These are not mutually exclusive, he explains, because if platelets and the factors involved in coagulation have been destroyed or incapacitated, coagulation is disrupted.ĭuring a session on life threatening diseases in dermatology held at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venerology Congress last September in Paris, Dr. There are three main causes of purpura: Disorders of platelets, disorders of coagulation and vasculitis. ![]() Hay, of King’s College Hospital in London. Although, the more most severely affected you are, the greater the leak is likely to be,” said Dr. It can manifest in various ways from very small petechiae to large bruises, but despite its presentation, “they are all manifestations of the same problem. ![]() Purpura occurs when blood escapes from the vascular system into the skin. There are warning signs that purpura can be potentially life threatening, says Roderick Hay, D.M., FRCP, a consultant dermatologist with a special interest in infectious disease.
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