Diagnostic and prognostic value of fibrin stabilising factor in Schönlein-Henoch syndrome.

Fibrin stabilising factor (FSF) was studied in the circulating blood of 196 children. These 196 children comprised three groups: 131 controls (group A), 20 children with diseases of potential repercussion on FSF determination (group B), and 45 children with Schönlein-Henoch syndrome (group C). Determinations from groups A and B produced normal values, but results from group C were significantly lower at the onset of the vasculitis. Seventeen children with Schönlein-Henoch syndrome have had complications, in 7 of whom these were severe. The decrease in FSF levels was correlated with the severity of such complications, and an increase in FSF was associated with recovery. Determination of FSF activity appears to help in the diagnosis of Schönlein-Henoch vasculitis, as well as helping to monitor the course of the disease and assessing the risks of complications.