Clinical characteristics of patients with acute pulmonary embolism complicated with antiphospholipid syndrome: a case control study.

OBJECTIVE

Acute pulmonary embolism (APE) is a critical and severe respiratory disease with a high mortality rate. Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a risk factor for the occurrence and recurrence of pulmonary thromboembolism. This study explored the clinical characteristics of patients with APS combined with APE (APS-APE).

METHODS

Sixty-eight patients with APS were retrospectively enrolled in the study, among which 34 patients suffered from APS-APE, and another 34 patients did not. Age and gender were matched between the groups. The clinical data of patients were collected. The clinical characteristics of the 2 groups were summarized and analysed by comparing the clinical data.

RESULTS

61.8% patients of APS-APE had a history of lower limbs deep venous thrombosis (DVT), which was more common than APE group. The first symptoms of patients in APS-APE group were more common than APS group when admitted to hospital, including cough, fever, dyspnea, hemoptysis, chest tightness, chest pain, swelling and pain of lower limbs. The level of both D-dimer and fibrinogen degradation products (FDP) in APS-APE group was higher than APS group. The positive detection rate of aβ2GPI in APS-APE group had a higher level. Binary logistic regression analysis showed that the risk factors of APE in APS patients were dyspnea, positive aβ2GPI and elevated D-dimer.

CONCLUSIONS

APS patients with medical history of DVT and with abnormal results of D-dimer, FDP and aβ2GPI were more likely to be suffered from APE. Dyspnea, positive aβ2GPI and elevated D-dimer are risk factors for APE in APS patients.