Coagulation abnormalities in idiopathic portal venous thrombosis

Background: Portal vein thrombosis, usually idiopathic, is the cause of por tal hypertension in 46% of Indian patients, who present with a variceal ble ed. The presence of lupus anticoagulant (LA) and antithrombin III deficienc y have been reported to be associated with an increased tendency to venous thrombosis. Methods and Results: We studied 30 patients with portal venous thrombosis d iagnosed by ultrasound. Two patients were positive for a lupus anticoagulan t and both had very prolonged partial thromboplastin time with kaolin. None of the patients had antithrombin III deficiency. (C) 1999 Blackwell Scienc e Asia Pty Ltd.