The Importance of Mean Platelet Volume in Children with Nephrotic Syndrome

Objective: The importance of mean platelet volume (MPV) in chronic inflammation was demonstrated in many dis­eases. We aimed to evaluate the role of MPV in nephrotic syndrome of childhood and relation with steroid response. Methods: We enrolled 59 children with nephrotic syndrome (24 steroid-resistance and 35 steroid-sensitive) and 34 healthy controls into the study. We evaluated total cholesterol, proteinuria, CRP, and albumin from study group and MPV and platelet count from both control and study group. Results: MPV level was higher in children with nephrotic syndrome when compared with control (8.6 ± 1.39 fl versus 7.09 ± 0.96 fl, p<0.001). Also platelet count was elevated in study group (406.092 ± 125.891 / μl versus 321.382 ± 78.666 / μl, p<0.001). MPV level and platelet count was similar in control and study subjects (p=0.798 and p=0.56). Conclusion: We demonstrated elevated MPV and platelet count in children with nephrotic syndrome. MPV is cheap, simple and important method to demonstrate platelet activation in nephrotic syndrome.