A 23-year-old woman has had altered consciousness and slurred speech for the past 24 hours. A head CT scan shows a right temporal hemorrhagic infarction. Cerebral angiography shows a distal right middle cerebral arterial occlusion. Within the past 3 years, she has had an episode of pulmonary embolism. A pregnancy 18 months ago ended in miscarriage. Laboratory studies show a false-positive serologic test for syphilis, normal prothrombin time (PT), elevated partial thromboplastin time (PTT), and normal platelet count. Which of the following is the most likely cause of these findings?
A 23-year-old woman has had altered consciousness and slurred speech for the past 24 hours. A head CT scan shows a right temporal hemorrhagic infarction. Cerebral angiography shows a distal right middle cerebral arterial occlusion. Within the past 3 years, she has had an episode of pulmonary embolism. A pregnancy 18 months ago ended in miscarriage. Laboratory studies show a false-positive serologic test for syphilis, normal prothrombin time (PT), elevated partial thromboplastin time (PTT), and normal platelet count. Which of the following is the most likely cause of these findings?
💡 Explanation
A 23-year-old woman has had altered consciousness and slurred speech for the past 24 hours. A head CT scan shows a right temporal hemorrhagic infarction. Cerebral angiography shows a distal right middle cerebral arterial occlusion. Within the past 3 years, she has had an episode of pulmonary embolism. A pregnancy 18 months ago ended in miscarriage. Laboratory studies show a false-positive serologic test for syphilis, normal prothrombin time (PT), elevated partial thromboplastin time (PTT), and normal platelet count. Which of the following is the most likely cause of these findings?
✓ Correct Answer: A. Antiphospholipid antibody
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