The plasma levels of activated thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor and thrombomodulin in Behçet disease and their association with thrombosis.

Abstract Objective To investigate the plasma levels of activated thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (aTAFI) and thrombomodulin (TM) in Behcet disease (BD) and their relationship with thrombosis. Methods Plasma aTAFI and TM levels were measured by ELISA in 89 patients with BD (18 having venous thrombosis) and in 86 healthy controls. Results Compared with healthy controls, the BD group had significantly lower levels of aTAFI (13.49±8.88µg/ml vs. 26.76±11.57µg/ml, p 0.05). Despite a tendency to positive correlation (r=0.37, p=0.0004) between plasma levels of aTAFI and TM in healthy controls, there was a tendency for negative correlation (r=-0.51, p Conclusion The plasma aTAFI and TM levels do not seem to be related with the presence of thrombosis observed in BD. Increased plasma TM levels in BD may simply reflect endothelial cell activation and dysfunction.