What does it mean if you have antiphospholipid syndrome?

What does it mean if you have antiphospholipid syndrome?

Antiphospholipid (AN-te-fos-fo-LIP-id) syndrome occurs when your immune system mistakenly creates antibodies that make your blood much more likely to clot. This can cause dangerous blood clots in the legs, kidneys, lungs and brain.

Is APS life threatening?

Despite being a potentially life-threatening condition, the general prognosis for most APS patients is good and, with the correct treatment and lifestyle changes, the majority of patients can lead a relatively normal life provided they continue with their medication.

What happens in the body to cause antiphospholipid syndrome?

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is caused by the body’s immune system producing abnormal antibodies called antiphospholipid antibodies. This increases the risk of blood clots developing in the blood vessels, which can lead to serious health problems, such as: deep vein thrombosis (DVT) strokes.

What type of disease is antiphospholipid syndrome?

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder. Signs and symptoms vary, but may include blood clots, miscarriage, rash, chronic headaches, dementia , and seizures . APS occurs when your body’s immune system makes antibodies that attack phospholipids.

How long can you live with antiphospholipid syndrome?

Results: Thirty-eight patients (15%) died during the follow-up period. Mean age of the decreased was 35.4 +/- 12.2 years (range 21-52 years) and the disease duration 8.6 +/- 8.2 years (range 0.6-20), the median length of the survival from the time of the diagnosis was 6.2 +/- 4.3 years.

Can antiphospholipid antibodies go away?

People who have abnormal blood clots, repeated miscarriages, or autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and multiple sclerosis often have antiphospholipid antibodies. People with cancer may also have these antibodies. The antibodies often fade away when the cancer is treated.

What can you not eat with APS?

You may need to avoid eating large amounts of vitamin K-rich foods such as avocado, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, leafy greens and garbanzo beans. Cranberry juice and alcohol can increase warfarin’s blood-thinning effect. Ask your doctor if you need to limit or avoid these drinks.

How does antiphospholipid cause abortion?

4 While the reason for APS-associated miscarriages is unclear, some researchers believe that the blood clots seen in APS can block the blood supply to the placenta. APS is a well-established cause of later miscarriages, but doctors are still unsure of the role that aPL antibodies might play in early miscarriage.

Does antiphospholipid syndrome shorten your life?

With appropriate medication and lifestyle modifications, most individuals with primary antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) lead normal healthy lives. However, subsets of patients continue to have thrombotic events despite aggressive therapies.

What should you avoid with APS?

Can you live a long life with antiphospholipid syndrome?

For those who do experience clots, treatment can involve the use of blood-thinning drug warfarin. When APS is managed properly, the majority of people with the illness can live normal, full lives.

Can I get pregnant if I have APS?

With the right treatment and care, most women with APS have successful pregnancies. APS is also one of the most treatable causes of recurrent miscarriage.

How do we diagnose the antiphospholipid syndrome?

How we diagnose the antiphospholipid syndrome Introduction. Clarification of the nomenclature. Overview of the assays. Characteristics of anti-β 2 GPI antibodies that associate with thrombosis. High-risk profile of patients who test positive on the CL-ELISA, the direct-β 2 GPI ELISA, and LA. Considerations arising at the laboratory-clinical interface of APS diagnosis.

What does antiphospholipid syndrome mean?

Antiphospholipid syndrome. [Source] Antiphospholipid syndrome is an autoimmune condition where antibodies attack a component of cell membranes. This leads to clotting in both arteries and veins which usually lead to further complications such as deep-vein thrombosis or stroke as well as infarctions in the smaller blood vessels.

How do you get antiphospholipid syndrome?

Antiphospholipid Syndrome is one such disorder in which the antibodies produced by the immune system increases the risk of a person developing frequent blood clots. An individual can get Antiphospholipid Syndrome through infections or medications.

What is the prognosis of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS)?

Recurrent thrombosis is the hallmark of the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Pregnancy losses and cytopenias (thrombocytopenia or hemolytic anemia) may occur as the sole manifestation of the syndrome. The long-term prognosis in patients with APS is primarily influenced by the risk of recurrent thrombosis.