Activation of the contact system of plasma proteolysis in the adult respiratory distress syndrome.

Adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a complex pulmonary clinicopathologic condition associated with pulmonary endothelial injury and blood coagulation activation. In patients with ARDS from all causes, factor VII levels were significantly reduced. Patients with ARDS caused by sepsis had more evidence of intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis than did patients with trauma-related ARDS by having significantly (p less than or equal to 0.05) increased prothrombin times, activated partial thromboplastin times, and fibrin degradation products, and decreased antithrombin III concentration. We sought to determine whether the proteins of the contact system of plasma proteolysis (factor XII, prekallikrein, high molecular weight kininogen, and C1 inhibitor) were also activated after acute lung injury. Patients with ARDS caused by either trauma or sepsis had significantly (p less than or equal to 0.01) reduced factor XII levels, high molecular weight kininogen functional activity, prekallikrein activity, and prekallikrein antigen levels compared with controls. In both the sepsis-related and trauma-related ARDS groups, C1 inhibitor activity was significantly reduced but C1 inhibitor antigen levels were significantly elevated from control. These findings showed that the proteins of the contact system were more extensively activated in ARDS than were the proteins that contribute to later reactions in intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis. Activation of the contact system proteins could be the result of endothelial injury occurring as part of ARDS. Intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis in patients with ARDS also arise from components independent from contact system activation.