Progression of primary APS (Hughes syndrome) into serological SLE: case report

An Arab woman presented with a history of multiple foetal losses and spontaneous venous thromboembolism, which recurred on several occasions. The presence of antiphospholipid antibodies in the absence of other clinical and serological features of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), including negative antinuclear antibodies (ANA), confirmed the diagnosis of primary antiphospholipid syndrome (PAPS). More than 15 years after the beginning of clinical events and 10 years after diagnosis, she progressed into the immunological domain of SLE without concurrent clinical features. The patient exhibited weakly positive ANA of a speckled pattern, strongly positive anti (ds) DNA antibodies and false positive VDRL. Lymphopenia has not been observed at any stage of the follow-up. Although the evolution of PAPS into SLE has been infrequently reported, this seems to be another case suggesting that PAPS in some patients may be an early manifestation of lupus. Received: 10 April 2000 / Accepted: 15 June 2000