A splenectomy is the surgical procedure where the spleen is removed. The spleen plays a part in maintaining a healthy immune system and cleans the blood of foreign matter. It helps eliminate the platelets that have antibodies bound to them. Theoretically, if the spleen is removed, the platelets will stay. Splenectomies have been used to treat ITP since 1913.
Splenectomized patients are at an increased risk for infections.
As the time since splenectomy increases, the positive response to the procedure decreases. There is no effective method to predict a patient's response to a splenectomy. There are two types of splenectomies, laproscopic and open. The laproscopic splenectomy is becoming more popular since the healing time is reduced and it has the same rate of success as the open spelenctomy. About the Spleen ITP occurs when antibodies bind to platelets resulting in their clearance from circulation.