Catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome: Lessons from the "CAPS Registry"

The catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome (CAPS) is a rare life-threatening clinical condition that represents the most severe clinical presentation of the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). It was first described in 1992 in a group of patients that presented with multiorgan involvement and microangiopathic features of APS. Most of the current knowledge of CAPS comes from the analysis of all cases collected at the "CAPS Registry" that was created in 2000 to perform studies on this condition. Most cases are triggered by a prothrombotic situation that leads to a multiorgan thrombosis and a cytokine storm. The analysis of cases included in the "CAPS Registry" has shown that the triple therapy with anticoagulation, glucocorticoids, and plasma exchange and/or intravenous immunoglobulins is associated to a better prognosis of CAPS. The improvement of the knowledge allowed a decrease from the 50% mortality rate reported in the first series to 25-30% in the most recent publications.

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A review drawing on the CAPS Registry describes catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome as multiorgan thrombosis with cytokine storm; triple therapy with anticoagulation, glucocorticoids, and plasma exchange and/or intravenous immunoglobulins improved prognosis, lowering mortality from 50% to 25-30%.

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