OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia and its possible clinical and laboratorial associations in patients with primary antiphospholipid syndrome (PAPS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a transversal study with 27 patients (88% women) with PAPS (Sapporo criteria). Demographic and clinical data, as well as comorbidities, medications, antiphospholipid antibodies, and blood concentrations of homocysteine, measured by high resolution liquid chromatography, were evaluated. RESULTS: Six (22%) out of 27 patients had high levels of homocysteine (98.7 ± 8.9 versus 8.0 ± 2.9 ¼M, P = 0.0008). Comparison between the group of patients with hyperhomocysteinemia and the group of patients with normal serum homocysteine levels did not show differences in the demographic data (age, white, weight, height, and body mass index) or in the duration of the disease (64 ± 39.6 versus 77.9 ± 61.3 months, P = 0.32). Differences in disease manifestations (arterial, venous, and obstetric events, deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary thromboembolism, thrombocytopenia, acute myocardial infarction, angina, and stroke), comorbidities (hypertension and hyperlipidemia), life style (physical activity, past and present smoking), as well as the use of medications (past and present use of corticosteroids, statins, chloroquine, and acetylsalicylic acid), were not observed between both groups. The prevalence and titers of anticardiolipin antibodies were similar in both groups of patients. CONCLUSION: Hyperhomocysteinemia can be detected in approximately one fourth of the PAPS patients, and it is not associated with distinct clinical and laboratorial characteristics of this disorder.
primary antiphospholipid syndrome; hyperhomocysteinemia; thrombosis; clinical
