National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center, a program of the National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences

Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura

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Is idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura hereditary?
The cause of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is unknown. It is not thought to be genetic because it is rare for multiple people in the same family to develop this disease.[1] Only a few cases of familial ITP have been documented, including an affected woman and 3 of her 4 children, identical twins with chronic ITP, and a mother with chronic ITP who had a child with purpura. The child's purpura resolved on its own within 3 weeks while the mother remained thrombocytopenic.[2]
Last updated: 1/22/2013

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  1. B. Godeau . Immune thrombocytopenic purpura. Orphanet. August 2009; http://www.orpha.net/consor/cgi-bin/OC_Exp.php?lng=EN&Expert=3002. Accessed 3/22/2012.
  2. Paul J. Converse et al. THROMBOCYTOPENIC PURPURA, AUTOIMMUNE; AITP. OMIM. March 20, 2009; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/omim/188030. Accessed 3/22/2012.