If you were diagnosed with a cryptogenic stroke talk to your doctor about this.
http://www.sciencecodex.com/autoimmune_disease_linked_to_pregnancy_loss_stroke_more_often_than_you_d_expect-101793
For years, researchers have known that antiphospholipid antibodies
(aPLs) can cause pregnancy loss and clotting, but they haven't known the
true scope of the problem. Now a new study provides the first estimates
of the prevalence of these antibodies in patients suffering from
pregnancy loss, stroke, myocardial infarction, and deep vein thrombosis.
"Based on the available data, our best estimate is that around 10 to
15% of clotting disorders are associated with autoimmune
antiphospholipid antibodies," said Doruk Erkan, M.D., an associate
attending rheumatologist and clinician researcher at Hospital for
Special Surgery in New York City, who is the senior researcher of the
study.
The research will be presented on Nov. 13, at 3:15 p.m. ET, during
the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology/Association
of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ACR/ARHP), to be held Nov. 9-14,
in Washington D.C.
In some individuals, aPLs do not cause any health problems, but in
others, aPLs can trigger production of proteins that can cause
inflammation and increase the risk for the formation of clots. This can
cause pregnancy complications, strokes, heart attacks, and blood clots
in other organs. Individuals who are aPL-positive and have either venous
thrombosis, arterial thrombosis, or fetal loss are classified as having
antiphospholipid syndrome (APS).
To get a grasp on the magnitude of the aPL problem, an international
group of researchers searched PubMed to identify studies that involved
patients with pregnancy loss, stroke, myocardial infarction or deep vein
thrombosis, and that also tested patients for aPLs. They identified 108
papers and analyzed them for the type of outcome, the aPL tests used,
the definition of positive aPL (low, medium, or high), confirmation of
aPL, and the prevalence of positive aPL in the study population.
aPLs were found in 12% of individuals with a pregnancy loss, 14% of
patients who had a stroke, 13% of patients who had a myocardial
infarction, and 10% of patients who had deep vein thrombosis. Using
databases that estimate the United States' prevalence of these
conditions, the researchers extrapolated from their study data that
aPLs are associated with approximately 60,000 cases of pregnancy loss,
120,000 cases of stroke, 120,000 cases of myocardial infarction, and
30,000 cases of deep vein thrombosis.
The researchers note that the estimates are limited by a lack of
robust data. Many of the reports were old and didn't use the same
classification criteria that are used today. In addition, the majority
of the studies did not firmly establish the presence of aPLs in patients
by performing two tests 12 weeks apart, something that is considered
essential to confirm a diagnosis today. But despite the limitations, the
new study does provide a rough snapshot of the prevalence of aPLs in
patients with a number of health conditions.
"Accepting all of the limitations of the literature, the study does
provide an estimate, which is important to raise awareness of aPLs and
the health problems they cause. These numbers are also important for
AntiPhospholipid Syndrome Alliance for Clinical Trials and International
Networking (APS ACTION) while designing clinical trials," said Dr
Erkan, who is also the executive committee chair of the newly formed
clinical research organization.
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