What does purpura mean?
Purpura is a medical term for blood that has leaked from small blood vessels into the skin, producing red-purple, purple, or bruise-like spots and patches. The condition may result from fragile or leaky vessels, reduced platelets, inflammation, clotting disorders, medications, or other medical conditions. In strict clinical usage, purpura is broader than petechiae, which are tiny pinpoint areas of bleeding, and it is not simply a synonym for any bruise. The word can refer either to the characteristic skin finding or to the bleeding process. Although now associated chiefly with medicine, purpura comes through Latin from the ancient name for a costly purple dye associated with Tyre, a dye historically obtained from sea snails. This history explains the unusual connection between a skin condition and the rich purple colour of the original dye.
nounA group of purple or red-purple spots or patches caused by bleeding into the skin, usually as a result of damaged or leaky small blood vessels. The term may refer to the bleeding itself or to a condition characterized by such skin discoloration.
- A condition marked by purple or red-purple patches or spots on the skin or mucous membranes, caused by blood leaking from small vessels.
- The bleeding itself when it occurs beneath the skin, producing visible discoloration.
"The doctor noted widespread purpura on the patient's legs and ordered blood tests to investigate the cause."
"A blood disorder left her with bruising and widespread purpura."
"The clinician examined the patient's purpura to determine whether the lesions were raised and palpable."
The technical plural purpurae is used in medical writing; purpura is also often used without a marked plural in discussions of the condition.
"Palpable purpurae were visible on the lower limbs."
Purpura is named for the same ancient purple dye made from sea snails: both the colour and the skin condition bear the name of Tyrian purple.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does purpura come from?
The word comes from Latin purpura, meaning a purple colour or the mollusc from which Tyrian purple dye was obtained. Latin purpura was borrowed from Ancient Greek porphūra, a term associated with the purple dye and its source. English acquired the medical meaning through Latin usage, while related words such as purple, purpuric, and purpureous continue the same colour-associated root.
Related word forms
How purpura is actually used
This is primarily a medical term. In formal clinical usage, purpura is related to but broader than petechiae, which are very small pinpoint hemorrhages; the term should not be used as a lay synonym for ordinary bruising without regard to the underlying cause.
Easily confused with purpura
Purpura is a broad term for bleeding into the skin, whereas petechiae specifically refers to tiny, pinpoint, non-blanching spots.