Original ArticlesActivated protein C resistance and Factor V Leiden in patients with hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelets syndrome☆
Section snippets
Materials and methods
A total of 80 patients with HELLP syndrome were diagnosed and treated at the University of Göttingen Medical School between 1987 and 1996. Of these, 21 women could be identified 6 months to 9 years after parturition who still lived in the Göttingen area, were willing to participate in the study, and were not users of oral contraceptives at the time of the study. Because none of these selection criteria had a direct relationship to any of the experimental parameters of the study, this selection
Results
Activated protein C resistance determinations now are employed widely. Nevertheless, results are known to vary significantly and the analytic systems are not standardized. We consequently determined the frequency distribution of activated protein C ratios in randomly selected plasma sample donors in the Göttingen (central Germany) area. As shown in Figure 1, a subgroup of 90% of these values were normally distributed, varying around a mean of 2.65. There was no difference between male and
Discussion
Thrombin converts fibrinogen to fibrin and activates coagulation Factors V and VIII. At the same time, excessive coagulation is balanced by a number of anticoagulative mechanisms. These include antithrombin and protein C, which act as key regulators of the coagulation system.11 Protein C is activated on the binding of thrombin to the endothelial cell surface protein thrombomodulin. Activated protein C inhibits the coagulation cascade by cleaving Factor Va and Factor VIIIa, which leads to the
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Supported by a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft Kr1571/1-2.