The varied sensitivity of partial thromboplastin and prothrombin time reagents in the demonstration of the lupus-like anticoagulant

Abstract

An acquired inhibitor of blood coagulation, similar to that described in patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), was detected during routine coagulation screening in 10 patients who did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of SLE. The lupus-like anticoagulant (LLAC) was diagnosed on the basis of prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and/or prothrombin time (PT) which failed to correct when patient plasma was added to normal plasma; an additional criterion was an abnormal tissue thromboplastin inhibition test. No patient had a specific inhibitor directed against factors VIII and IX. Demonstration of LLAC was highly dependent upon the type of reagents adopted in the APTT and PT: the abnormality was detected consistently by one reagent only. One-stage assays of factors VIII and IX were characteristic of the presence of an inhibitor, showing non-parellel dose-response curves or decreased activity at low dilutions which were partially corrected at higher dilutions. Although 7 patients were free of abnormal bleeding, unequivocal signs of haemorrhagic tendency after a surgery were present in the remaining 3 patients. The findings suggest that LLAC is a non-exceptional cause of prolonged coagulation screening tests, and that it may sometimes be associated with impaired haemostasis.