Combined hepatic artery and segmental portal vein occlusion in antiphospholipid syndrome

Abstract

Antiphospholipid syndrome can have various clinical presentations, two of the most common being arterial and venous thrombosis. It is, however, unusual for them to occur in combination. We report here a case of combined hepatic artery and segmental portal venous occlusion in a 32-year-old patient who was shown to have a lupus anticoagulant. There have been no previous reports of thrombosis occurring simultaneously in the coeliac axis and the portal vein. Computerised tomography, Doppler ultrasound scanning and selective visceral angiography were used to demonstrate the anatomical lesions. The patient was treated medically with unfractionated heparin leading to a favourable clinical outcome. The diagnosis and management of this case is discussed with reference to the current literature on visceral thrombosis and antiphospholipid antibody syndrome.