HEMOSTASIS PARAMETERS IN RENAL-TRANSPLANT PATIENTS

  • 1 January 1984
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 114  (34) , 1149-1154
Abstract
Studies on 1-yr function conducted by the European Multicenter Trial showed that, after renal allograft transplantation, bleeding complications were only found in patients treated with cyclosporin as compared with those treated with azathioprine/steroids. To investigate a possible relationship between the bleeding tendency and the cyclosporin treatment, 18 parameters of hemostasis were studied in 11 patients, 6 of whom received cyclosporin A and the other 5 conventional treatment with azathioprine/steroids. Bleeding tendency could not be related to any specific coagulation parameter. Of interest is that clot retraction was significantly lower in the cyclosporin group (88 .+-. 9% vs. 125 .+-. 10%). Considering the fact that the skin bleeding time according to Ivy was normal in all patients, the clinical significance of the lower levels of the clot retraction appears to be minor. Discriminant analysis showed that these significantly lower clot retraction values could not be related to the lower platelet count levels in platelet rich plasma (205,000 .+-. 85,000/mm3 vs. 280,000 .+-. 67,000/mm3) but were associated with cyclosporin A treatment. All factor-VIII related activities were elevated in both groups. The main difference between the cyclosporin group and the conventionally treated group was significantly elevated levels of factor VIII procoagulant antigen (VIII: CAg) (cyclosporin A treated group: VIII: CAg 435 .+-. 145%, conventionally treated group: VIII: CAg 215 .+-. 99%). These results suggest hypercoagulability rather than bleeding tendency under cyclosporin treatment.