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Antiphospholipid syndrome
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Antiphospholipid syndrome is not defined by a symptom but by two things coinciding: antibodies called antiphospholipid antibodies in the blood, and, along with them, thrombosis, meaning clots inside the vessels, or pregnancy losses and complications.
Those antibodies are autoantibodies: instead of defending the body against something from outside, they attack the body's own tissue. They are called antiphospholipid because they attack and damage parts of cells called phospholipids, and also the proteins that stick to them. That damage makes it more likely that blood will clot where it should not, in the veins as well as the arteries. Think of a tube whose inner wall has been scraped: where the surface is damaged, a plug forms more easily.
There are two ways it can come about. It can show up on its own, with no other autoimmune disease behind it, and then it is called primary. Or it can accompany another autoimmune disease, such as systemic lupus erythematosus; in that case it is called secondary.
In brief
Antiphospholipid syndrome is the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies together with thrombosis or with pregnancy losses and complications.
They are autoantibodies that attack proteins bound to phospholipids, which are components of cells; that damage makes it more likely that clots will form in veins and arteries.
It can be primary, occurring with no other autoimmune disease, or secondary to one, such as systemic lupus erythematosus.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingAntiphospholipid Syndrome, StatPearlsPublished
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood InstituteAntiphospholipid Syndrome, National Heart, Lung, and Blood InstitutePublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated