What is lupus anticoagulant?
Disease description:
My friend has developed many spots on their arm and after an examination, it was diagnosed as lupus erythematosus. I would like to ask, what is a lupus anticoagulant?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Yang Tiesheng
Lupus anticoagulant is an IgG or IgM type antiphospholipid antibody acting on phospholipids, belonging to pathological circulating anticoagulants. It mainly exists in the blood of patients with various autoimmune diseases and tumors, including systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple thrombosis, thrombocytopenia, and others. Lupus anticoagulant can interfere with phospholipid-dependent coagulation or anticoagulation reactions, prolonging coagulation time. However, clinically, it often does not present with bleeding but rather predisposes to thrombosis. Detection of lupus anticoagulant is significant for diagnosing antiphospholipid syndrome and assessing prognosis and complications in diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus.
