The lupus anticoagulant

TLDR

The lupus anticoagulant is believed to inhibit prothrombin activation by the Xa‑V‑phospholipid complex. The authors reviewed clinical and laboratory data from 37 patients with lupus anticoagulant. In 37 patients, 14 had non‑immune disorders, 21 operative procedures resulted in only one excessive bleeding episode, and lupus anticoagulant was identified as a rare cause of bleeding.

Abstract

The clinical and laboratory experience with the lupus anticoagulant was reviewed in 37 patients. The anti-coagulant is thought to act by blocking the activation of prothrombin by the prothrombin activator comlex of factors Xa, V, and phospholipid. Although the anticoagulant has been principally associated with diseases of immune origin, 14 of the present patients had disorders not thought to be immune in nature. Eighteen patients underwent twenty-one operative procedures with only a single episode of excessive bleeding. In the author's experience, the lupus anticoagulant is a rare cause of bleeding.