ACQUIRED VON WILLEBRANDS-SYNDROME CAUSING A HEMORRHAGIC DIATHESIS IN A PATIENT WITH HYPOTHYROIDISM

The occurrence of bleeding diathesis with menorrhagia and easy bruisin g may occur in patients with moderate to severe hypothyroidism sometim es linked to acquired von Willebrand's disease (VWD), We describe a pa tient with profound hypothyroidism in whom the diagnosis of hypothyroi dism was established while evaluating uncontrolled gingival bleeding a fter a dental procedure. Thyroid hormone replacement led to a rise in von Willebrand factor, factor VIIIC, and a significant fall in the ele vated bleeding time from 15 to 8 min, Acquired von Willebrand's diseas e is an unusual manifestation of hypothyroidism and is reversible.