Haemostatic abnormalities in hepatosplenic schistosomiasis mansoni

Abstract

Hepatosplenic schistosomiasis is a complex immuno-regulatory disease and is major health problem in endemic countries. Acute bleeding is one of its most serious complications and often life-threatening. Clinical studies have demonstrated that the patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis are prone to develop complex haemostatic abnormalities that may be linked to the potential risk of bleeding from ruptured esophageal varices in these patients. The deficit in haemostatic parameters is more pronounced with the advancement of the disease and is maximal in the patients with experience of haematomesis. Evidences of enhanced generation of thrombin and plasmin indicate the presence of low-grade DIC in advanced hepatosplenic schistosomiasis, which is considered as a principal cause of haemostatic abnormalities in this endemic disease. Demonstration of procoagulant expression in peripheral blood monocytes of the patients and in the livers, spleens and intestines of S. mansoni-infected mice suggest their possible implication in the causation of DIC in S. mansoni infections. Moreover, because in vitro analysis indicates a participation of immune mechanisms in the localized procoagulant expression, it seems likely that the immune responses to schstosomes play a major role in the pathogenic mechanisms of haemostatic abnormalities in hepatosplenic schistosomiasis.