Chapter 3 Laboratory Heterogeneity of Antiphospholipid Antibodies

Silvia S. Pierangeli, Jacob H. Rand

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

The anticardiolipin (aCL) test has been widely utilized by physicians since the mid-1980s for diagnosing patients with the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Establishment of this diagnosis has improved the management of patients with recurrent thrombosis and recurrent pregnancy losses. The test was first established in 1983 as a radioimmunoassay and soon thereafter converted into an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The other test commonly used in the diagnosis of APS is the lupus anticoagulant test (LAC). The aCL ELISA is sensitive for the diagnosis of APS but lacks specificity. On the other hand, the LAC assay, although more specific is not as sensitive as the aCL ELISA. More specific tests are now available such as the anti-β2 glycoprotein I (anti-β2GPI) assay, the antiprothrombin (anti-PT) assay and other ELISAs that utilize negatively charged phospholipids other than cardiolipin to coat the plates. In the past 25 years, there have been numerous efforts to standardize aCL, LAC, and anti-β2GPI tests. However, there are still reports of significant intra- and inter-laboratory variation in results for all three assays. This chapter discusses in detail the clinical utilities of these tests, technical problems associated with their use, the current laboratory classification criteria for diagnosis of APS, and possible new and better assays that may be available in the near future for diagnosis of APS.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationAntiphospholipid Syndrome in Systemic Autoimmune Diseases
EditorsRicard Cervera, Joan Carles Reverter, Munther Khamashta
Pages35-53
Number of pages19
DOIs
StatePublished - 2009
Externally publishedYes

Publication series

NameHandbook of Systemic Autoimmune Diseases
Volume10
ISSN (Print)1571-5078

Keywords

  • anticardiolipin antibodies
  • antiphospholipid antibodies
  • antiphospholipid syndrome
  • lupus anticoagulant

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