Antiphospholipid antibodies in inflammatory bowel diseases.

Patients with inflammatory bowel diseases are susceptible to thrombosis in the active phase of the disease. Tests and some factors of coagulability have shown the existence of hypercoagulability of the blood in the active phase of these diseases. In the last few years some authors have found increased levels of antiphospholipid antibodies in the blood of patients with severe forms of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. In a prospective study anticardiolipin antibodies have been measured in the blood of 12 patients, eight with ulcerative colitis and four with Crohn's disease. Six patients with ulcerative colitis and two with Crohn's disease were in the active phase of the disease, and the others in the remission. None of the patients had any clinical signs of thrombosis. Anticardiolipin antibodies were slightly increased in only one patient with severe ulcerative colitis complicated with erythema nodosum and swelling of the ankles. In nine patients anticardiolipin antibodies were in the normal range, but in two they were not found. Results of our study do not allow any definite conclusion regarding the possible role of antiphospholipid antibodies in the development of thrombosis in inflammatory bowel diseases: the number of the patients is relatively low and in half of the cases the disease was moderately active. Further studies are therefore necessary.