Issue Contents
Circulating D-dimer and Thrombomodulin Levels
in Acute Febrile Phase of Measles
K. Ohnishi, Y. Kato
p 180-183, Volume
45, Number
3,
October 2002
Abstract
Objectives: Circulating D-dimer and thrombomodulin (TM)
levels are now routinely measured in clinical laboratories. Plasma
levels of D-dimer are used as a marker of fibrin formation and
degradation, and serum TM is used to assess the state of endothelial
cell injuries. While the levels of circulating D-dimer and TM have
been investigated in many diseases, to our knowledge they have not
been studied in patients with measles. We measured circulating levels
of D-dimer in patients with measles to discuss whether fibrin
formation and degradation occur and TM whether endothelial injury
occur.
Methods: The plasma levels of D-dimer and serum levels of
alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and creatinine were measured of 14
adolescent and adult Japanese patients with measles, and the serum or
plasma levels of TM of 10 of these 14 patients were measured in the
acute febrile phase and convalescent afebrile phase with commercially
available kits.
Results: Plasma D-dimer levels were significantly higher in
the acute febrile phase than in the convalescent afebrile phase in
patients with measles, and no significant difference was shown in
serum and plasma TM levels between the two phases. Plasma D-dimer
levels were not correlated with serum or plasma TM levels in either
phase. No significant differences were identified in the serum ALT and
creatinine levels between the acute febrile and convalescent afebrile
phases, and the levels of plasma D-dimer were not significantly
correlated with the serum ALT levels.
Conclusions: Our results indicate that while clot formation
and fibrinolysis may tend to occur in patients with the acute febrile
phase of measles, there may be little risk that such patients will
suffer endothelial injury. Copyright 2002 The British Infection
Society. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
