Real-world practice of obstetricians in respect of assays for antiphospholipid antibodies.
OBJECTIVE
The international classification criteria (CC) for definite antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) recommend confirmation of the sustained presence, for at least 12 weeks, of both lupus anticoagulant (LA), as determined by aPTT and RVVT, and anti β2glycoprotein I (β2GPI) or anticardiolipin (aCL) IgG and/or IgM. However, it remains unclear whether obstetricians comply with the aforementioned CC for the diagnosis of APS in daily clinical practice. We performed a nationwide survey to examine the attitudes of Japanese obstetricians toward the use of assays for antiphospholipid antibodies (aPLs).


METHODS
A questionnaire was sent to 2,700 obstetric facilities where maternity checkups are carried out. The types of assays conducted for aPLs, ascertainment of persistence of the antibodies for at least 12 weeks, and the cutoff points used for the assays were examined.


RESULTS
Of the facilities surveyed, 61.5% carried out the assay(s) only once. In regard to the type of assay performed, 97.1% carried out the assay for aCL IgG and/or β2GPI-dependent aCL, while 67.9% performed the LA-aPTT and/or LA-RVVT assay. Only 8.8% carried out assays for both LA. As for the cutoff points used, 98% of the facilities used lower cutoff points described in the manufacturers' manuals rather than the cutoff values recommended in the CC.


CONCLUSIONS
Thus, only a limited number of facilities adhered precisely to the CC for the diagnosis of APS. Inappropriate treatment and unnecessary expense are potentially major concerns when facilities overdiagnose APS using lower cutoff points or without ascertaining the persistence of the antibodies for at least 12 weeks. On the other hand, some patients miss the opportunity to be treated for APS because of the absence of testing for LA.
a Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences , Nagoya , Japan.
Mayumi
M
Sugiura-Ogasawara
b Department of Rheumatology , Endocrinology and Nephrology, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
Tatsuya
T
Atsumi
c Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine , Kobe , Japan.
Hideto
H
Yamada
a Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences , Nagoya , Japan.
Tamao
T
Kitaori
a Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences , Nagoya , Japan.
Yasuhiko
Y
Ozaki
a Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology , Nagoya City University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences , Nagoya , Japan.
Kinue
K
Katano
d Center of Maternal-Fetal, Neonatal and Reproductive Medicine, National center for child health and development , Tokyo , Japan.
Atsuko
A
Murashima
D000328:Adult; D017153:Antibodies, Anticardiolipin / Q000032:analysis; D017152:Antibodies, Antiphospholipid / Q000032:analysis*; D016736:Antiphospholipid Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016682:Lupus Coagulation Inhibitor / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009774:Obstetrics; D010808:Physical Examination; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011247:Pregnancy; D053482:beta 2-Glycoprotein I / Q000276:immunology*
D017153:Antibodies, Anticardiolipin; D017152:Antibodies, Antiphospholipid; D016682:Lupus Coagulation Inhibitor; D053482:beta 2-Glycoprotein I
Antiphospholipid antibody; lupus anticoagulant; obstetric antiphospholipid syndrome; recurrent pregnancy loss; survey