Lupus anticoagulant and protein S deficiency in a child who developed disseminated intravascular coagulation in association with varicella.

Varicella is not always a benign disease it may cause serious complications. We report a two-year-old boy with disseminated intravascular coagulation in association with varicella. The patient had the lupus anticoagulant, the antiphospholipid antibody, acquired free protein S deficiency, and increased concentrations of the prothrombin F 1+2 fragment. Intravenous immunoglobulin was administered due to its potential antibody-blocking activity, and the patient responded well. We recommend that children with varicella and disseminated intravascular coagulation should be examined for the lupus anticoagulant, the free protein S antigen, the prothrombin fragment F 1+2 and the other coagulation parameters. Intravenous immunoglobulin administration could be useful in such conditions because of its antibody-blocking activity.