Platelet Aggregation in Feline Cardiomyopathy

Platelet aggregation in response to adenosine diphosphate (ADP) was evaluated in 16 healthy cats and in 10 cats with cardiomyopathy. The minimum threshold concentration of ADP required to induce irreversible (2nd-phase) aggregation was determined in each cat. The minimum ADP concentration needed for 2nd-phase aggregation in platelets from healthy cats ranged from 1 microM to 100 microM ADP, with 56% (9/16) requiring 100 microM ADP. Of the remaining seven normal cats, three had platelets responding irreversibly to 10 microM ADP, and four had platelets responding to 1 microM ADP. In cats with cardiomyopathy, the threshold concentrations ranged from 0.01 microM ADP to 10 microM ADP. Two cats had platelets responding irreversibly to 0.01 microM ADP, whereas another cat had a threshold response at 0.1 microM ADP. Platelets from the remaining seven cats with cardiomyopathy exhibited 2nd-phase aggregation in response to 1 microM ADP (five cats) or 10 microM ADP (two cats). Platelet counts ranged from 210,000/mm3 to 630,000/mm3 in healthy cats and from 218,000/mm3 to 624,000/mm3 in cats with cardiomyopathy. There was no apparent correlation between the platelet count and the magnitude of the threshold aggregation response, as measured by lag phase and slope of the aggregation curves. The results indicate that some cats with cardiomyopathy have platelets that are hyperaggregable to ADP in vitro.