Gardner-Diamond Syndrome: Everything You Need to Know

It is unusual to see bruises appear on certain parts of the body following intense sadness or stress, yet this condition does indeed exist and is linked to a rare medical syndrome known as Psychogenic Purpura or Gardner-Diamond Syndrome. Read on to learn all about this article.

What is Gardner-Diamond Syndrome?

Gardner-Diamond Syndrome, or Psychogenic Purpura is a rare syndrome that can occur in anyone but is more common among young women, particularly those with fair skin. It leads to painful skin bruises on various body parts, especially the limbs or face, following episodes of emotional stress, trauma, sadness or extreme fatigue.

What Are The Causes Of This Syndrome?

The exact cause of this syndrome remains unknown, but there are several potential explanations. One prominent theory is that emotional stress has a direct impact on the skin, small blood vessels, and circulation.

Research has shown that individuals with this syndrome tend to have elevated levels of catecholamines and glucocorticoids, which affect certain body processes, such as fibrinolysis—the breakdown of fibrin in blood clots to prevent bleeding. This syndrome is also linked to increased activity of tissue plasminogen activator, leading to rapid degradation of the fibrin clots, resulting in subcutaneous bleeding.

What  Are The Main Symptoms?

Gardner-Diamond Syndrome may cause:

• Skin symptoms

Gardner-Diamond Syndrome causes skin bruises that can appear on any part of the body, specifically on the arms, legs, and face, following intense or sudden sadness, prolonged stress, or feelings of fear and anxiety. For this reason, they are known as emotional bruises.

Typically, these bruises appear in stages, initially causing pain, warmth, itching, burning, and tingling in the affected area. Soon after, a swollen skin lesion emerges, which then develops into a red or pink bruise within 24 hours. Over time, usually around 48 hours, it may turn a bluish-yellow shade and become less painful, often fading away within a week to ten days without leaving a mark.

• Other Symptoms 

In addition to skin symptoms, Gardner-Diamond Syndrome may cause other symptoms, including:

1. Gastrointestinal symptoms: Diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
2. Menstrual irregularities: More than 80% of affected women experience heavy menstrual periods.
3. Bleeding from different body parts, such as nosebleeds or gastrointestinal bleeding.
4. Other symptoms: Muscle pain, headaches, chest pain, joint pain, and fever.

How Is This Syndrome Diagnosed?

To diagnose this syndrome, a doctor will ask about the patient’s detailed medical history, medications, symptom nature and timing, mental state, and more. A comprehensive physical examination is performed, followed by a series of tests to identify the cause of the bruising and rule out other conditions like vasculitis, blood clotting disorders, von Willebrand disease, and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. Tests may include:

1. Complete Blood Count (CBC) to assess all blood cells.
2. Blood tests to measure clotting factor activity.

Blazma testing services offer many of the necessary tests to rule out other blood clotting disorders and confirm the diagnosis, including D-dimer, Prothrombin time, and Partial thromboplastin time tests.

What Are the Treatment Options?

Currently, there is no specific treatment for Gardner-Diamond Syndrome, though doctors may prescribe antidepressants to help manage the emotional stress and mood fluctuations that contribute to symptoms. Medications may also be given to control the severe symptoms associated with bruises, including:

• Antihistamines.
• Corticosteroids.
• Hormonal medications.
• Vitamins, such as Vitamin K.