Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia: A Rare Cause of Recurrent Profuse Epistaxis

Though epistaxis is a commonplace emergency encountered in the Otorhinolaryngology clinic, recurrent, severe and intractable cases are relatively less common. In those cases where no local causes are found that could explain such episodes, systemic causes, including hematological disorders should be considered, and thoroughly explored. However, routine hematological investigations often fail to identify a definite cause. Here we report about a 23 year-old woman presenting with severe recurrent epistaxis due to Glanzmann's thrombasthenia-a rare, autosomal recessive disease. Never before Glanzmann's thrombasthenia has been reported to present with severe epistaxis as its sole feature.