What Causes Red Dots On Legs, Hands And Forearms After Taking Plavix?

Posted on Sat, 20 Jun 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sat, 20 Jun 2015 Answered on

Fri, 10 Jul 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : My husband is taking Lysinopril and Plavix .. he is developing small red dots on lower legs and hands and forearms. Should I take him to an emergency room? He has no other symptoms.
Thrombocytopenia seems to be a side effect of his medications.

Answered by Dr. Noble Zachariah (16 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Likely to be purpura

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Welcome and thanks for your query.
I understand your concern.
Yes, the lesions can be due to purpura which can result from thrombocytopenia and /increased bleeding tendancy due to antiplatelet action of plavix.
It would be good to see a doctor, have him examined and investigated. If there is a delay in getting an appointment, please stop the plavix and have a platelet count and coagulation profile done.
Do get back to me if you have more queries.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar