Dental OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) Practice Exam

What could be a potential cause of spontaneous bleeding in a patient with thrombocytopenia?

1. Vitamin D deficiency

2. Medications affecting clotting

3. Low platelet counts

4. Cirrhosis of the liver

The correct answer is: Low platelet counts

Spontaneous bleeding in a patient with thrombocytopenia is primarily caused by low platelet counts. Thrombocytopenia, defined as an abnormally low number of platelets in the blood, compromises the body's ability to form clots effectively. Platelets play a crucial role in the hemostatic process; they aggregate at sites of blood vessel injury and help to initiate the clotting cascade to stop bleeding. When platelet levels drop below a certain threshold, the risk of spontaneous bleeding increases, even in the absence of an obvious injury. While other factors such as medications affecting clotting or liver disease can contribute to bleeding tendencies, the direct cause in the case of thrombocytopenia is the diminished quantity of platelets available to perform their function in hemostasis.