Immune Thrombocytopenia Following COVID-19 Vaccination in a Pediatric Patient
- 1Pediatrics, Olive View-University of California, Los Angeles Medical Center, Sylmar, USA
- 2Pediatrics/Pediatric Infectious Disease, Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, Downey, USA
Abstract
Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is the most common acquired bleeding disorder in children, with further delineation into primary and secondary causes; it is immune-mediated and typically self-limited. Primary ITP is often seen in children with a history of a preceding infection that has subsequently resolved. Additionally, ITP can be seen in children within six weeks of vaccination with measles-mumps-rubella and varicella, and in adults, ITP has developed following messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccination. We present the case of a three-year-old boy who presented with petechiae and purpura eight days after Moderna COVID-19 vaccination and was found to have severe thrombocytopenia with a platelet count of 3,000/mm³. He was thought to have secondary ITP from COVID-19 vaccination. To date, there have been no published reports of ITP presenting in children following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination. This case brings to attention the possible complication of ITP after COVID-19 vaccination with spontaneous resolution without medical intervention and the need for further clinical monitoring of symptoms after COVID-19 vaccination.
Related
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BibTeX
@article{syriac2026immune,
title = {{Immune Thrombocytopenia Following COVID-19 Vaccination in a Pediatric Patient}},
author = {Christy M Syriac and John D Petersen and Michael Bolaris and Shannon M Thyne},
journal = {Cureus},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.7759/cureus.117319},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13723296},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Immune Thrombocytopenia Following COVID-19 Vaccination in a Pediatric Patient
AU - Christy M Syriac
AU - John D Petersen
AU - Michael Bolaris
AU - Shannon M Thyne
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Cureus
DO - 10.7759/cureus.117319
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13723296
AB - Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is the most common acquired bleeding disorder in children, with further delineation into primary and secondary causes; it is immune-mediated and typically self-limited. Primary ITP is often seen in children with a history of a preceding infection that has subsequently resolved. Additionally, ITP can be seen in children within six weeks of vaccination with measles-mumps-rubella and varicella, and in adults, ITP has developed following messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccination. We present the case of a three-year-old boy who presented with petechiae and purpura eight days after Moderna COVID-19 vaccination and was found to have severe thrombocytopenia with a platelet count of 3,000/mm³. He was thought to have secondary ITP from COVID-19 vaccination. To date, there have been no published reports of ITP presenting in children following mRNA COVID-19 vaccination. This case brings to attention the possible complication of ITP after COVID-19 vaccination with spontaneous resolution without medical intervention and the need for further clinical monitoring of symptoms after COVID-19 vaccination.
SN - 2168-8184
ER -