ACTIVATED PROTEIN-C RESISTANCE IN PEDIATRIC INFLAMMATORY BOWEL-DISEASE

Background: There is evidence for a hypercoagulable state in inflammat ory bowel disease (LED), and small vessel thrombosis has been identifi ed in the bowel of patients with Crohn's disease, suggesting thrombosi s as a possible etiologic factor. Activated protein C (APC) resistance is the most common inherited disorder leading to thrombosis and accou nts for 30% to 40% of episodes of idiopathic venous thrombosis. Method s: The prevalence of APC resistance was studied in 23 patients with IB D (17 with Crohn's disease, 6 with ulcerative colitis) and in 11 contr ol subjects with recurrent abdominal pain or celiac disease, using an APC resistance screening method. Results: One patient with Crohn's dis ease had a positive screen result, two patients (one with Crohn's, one with ulcerative colitis) had borderline results, and results in all o f the control subjects were normal. One patient with Crohn's disease h ad a history of a thrumboembolic event but had a normal screen result. Conclusions: Activated protein C resistance does not seem to play a m ajor role in the etiology of the hypercoagulable state in inflammatory bowel disease.