Dig Dis Sci  2000 Jul;45(7):1465-9 

Inflammatory bowel diseases are not associated with major hereditary conditions

predisposing to thrombosis.

Vecchi M, Sacchi E, Saibeni S, Meucci G, Tagliabue L, Duca F, De Franchis R.

Gastroenterology Service, IRCCS Policlinico Hospital and University of Milan,

Italy.

Patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are at increased risk for

thromboembolic complications. Our aim was to evaluate whether the increased risk

for thrombosis in IBD could be due to a genetic association of IBD with

hereditary prothrombotic conditions. In all, 102 IBD patients (51 with

ulcerative colitis and 51 with Crohn's disease) with no history of thrombosis

and 204 matched normal subjects were enrolled. DNA specimens were evaluated by

PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism for factor V Leiden, methylene

tetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) and prothrombin gene mutations. In IBD

patients and matched controls the observed allele frequencies were similar,

being 1.5% and 1.2% for factor V Leiden gene mutation, 1.1% and 0.7% for

prothrombin gene mutation, and 45.1% and 47.4% for MTHFR gene mutation,

respectively. These rates also were not significantly different when patients

were analyzed according to age and sex distribution, diagnosis, and extension

and clinical type of disease. In conclusion, our study shows no association

between IBD and the most frequent hereditary prothrombotic conditions. Other

factors should be evaluated in order to understand the mechanisms underlying the

thrombotic risk of IBD.