Earlier Detection of Antiphospholipid Syndrome

Abstract

A 52-year-old man is sitting at home watching a baseball game when all of a sudden the vision in both his eyes went black. He described it as if someone pulled a “Venetian blind” over his eyes. He has a past medical history of aortic stenosis. He was taking Valsartan, Atorvastatin, B-12, Folic Acid, and Vitamin D-3 before the episode. He was prescribed Xarelto after the episode. It was found that he had an optical stroke. Since the pressure in the eye was relieved, partial eyesight returned. He now has full vision in his right eye, but only peripheral vision in his left eye. At first it was believed that the stiffened valve must have thrown the clot and it just traveled to the eye, but since the cardiologist refused to believe that it was his valve the actual cause was discovered, antiphospholipid disorder. It was found that the patient had elevated anti-cardiolipin antibodies that caused the blood clot to form. The patient’s life as a whole is now altered completely due to a preventable thrombolytic event. His children also had to be tested because this disease has a genetic component so it is not only him that is affected by this. If this man had been tested earlier for antiphospholipid syndrome then this whole event could have been avoided and his life would be different today.