Underlying bleeding disorders — such as hemophilia, thrombocytopenia, or factor V deficiency — can cause bruising. Hemophilia is a genetic condition wherein people lack either clotting factor VIII or IX, resulting in excessive bruising.
Call the doctor if bruising occurs easily or for no apparent reason. Call the doctor if the bruise is painful and under a toenail or fingernail. Call the doctor if a bruise does not improve within two weeks or fails to completely clear after three or four weeks.
Vitamin K Deficiency
Vitamin K may not get as much attention as some other vitamins. But it plays an important role in blood clotting. If you don't get enough vitamin K, you could get more bruises. Still, most healthy adults get enough of this vitamin from foods like leafy green vegetables.
People with leukemia are more likely to bruise because their bodies don't make enough platelets to plug bleeding blood vessels. Leukemia bruises look like any other kind of bruise, but there tend to be more of them than usual. Additionally, they may show up on unusual areas of your body, such as your back.
On black and brown skin petechiae and purpura typically look purple or darker than the surrounding skin and on lighter skin they tend to show as red or purple. You may have bleeding from your nose or gums, prolonged bleeding from a cut, heavy periods, or blood in your urine or poo.
They occur in unusual places – In cases of leukaemia, quite often bruises will appear in places that you wouldn't normally expect, especially; the back, legs, and hands.
Some people (it's usually women) just have more fragile blood vessels, and that makes them more likely to bruise, especially on their upper arms, thighs, or butt. It may seem scary, but if you feel fine and don't have any other symptoms, it's probably nothing to worry about.
These symptoms can be associated with a variety of medical conditions, including generalized anxiety disorder and acute stress reaction.
Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is a disorder that can lead to easy or excessive bruising and bleeding. The bleeding results from unusually low levels of platelets — the cells that help blood clot.
They look red or purple on lighter skin tones but appear brown or black on darker skin tones. Purpura is commonly referred to as a blood spot under your skin. Purpura usually consists of smaller dots that cluster in a specific area but may appear as one larger patch.
There's not enough iron to produce haemoglobin, which causes the production of platelets to dip. Platelets are an important component of proper blood clotting, so a drop in platelets leads to increased bruising, along with fatigue, weakness, cold hands and feet, and lightheadedness.
A person with leukemia may bruise more easily than before and in unusual places. They may also develop petechiae or purpura — red or purple patches that, like bruises, result from bleeding under the skin.
The bruising appears as a blue discoloration, and is a sign of retroperitoneal hemorrhage, or bleeding behind the peritoneum, which is a lining of the abdominal cavity. Grey Turner's sign takes 24–48 hours to develop, and can predict a severe attack of acute pancreatitis.
Unexplained bruising on the legs can occur in both adults and children due to a variety of factors, including injury, age, an underlying health condition, or even things like medication. For example, in adults, bruising can occur more easily as we age due to thinning of the skin.
A deficiency in certain vitamins — for instance, vitamin K or vitamin C — can result in unexplained bruises. A vitamin K deficiency is more common in newborns than in adults. Having insufficient vitamin K in the body for the blood to clot properly can result in a severe bleeding disorder.
People with diabetes often bruise easily, but bruising can also be due to many other causes. Minor bruises often disappear within days without medical intervention. But if your bruising is serious, you should see your doctor or primary health provider.
The most common symptoms of leukemia—fatigue, pale skin, weight loss and night sweats—are often attributed to other less serious conditions, such as the flu.
Most common symptoms of leukemia
If your white blood cells are low, you lose the ability to fight infections and get sick more often. When the platelets are involved, this affects your clotting ability and will result in bruising and bleeding more easily.
Someone lacking in iron, needed to make the hemoglobin for blood to carry oxygen throughout the body, might bruise easily. Symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia also include severe fatigue, dizziness or shortness of breath.
Hodgkin lymphoma is an uncommon cancer that develops in the lymphatic system, which is a network of vessels and glands spread throughout your body. The lymphatic system is part of your immune system.
The spot has an irregular, scalloped, or poorly defined border. The spot has varying colors from one area to the next, such as shades of tan, brown or black, or areas of white, red, or blue.
So while you may be able to see if you have genetic markers for future cancer development, there's currently no home test available that can tell you whether you have leukemia currently. Possible tests available for home use can give you an idea of your overall health and risk factors, but they can't diagnose leukemia.
If you experience frequent or unexplained bruising, your provider may order tests to rule out possible causes. These tests include: X-rays to check for bone fractures. Blood tests to check for clotting disorders and vitamin deficiencies.