Complexes in serum between alkaline phosphatase and immunoglobulin G: immunological and clinical aspects

A retrospective study was performed on 31 patients in whose sera an immune complex between alkaline phosphatase and immunoglobulin G had been detected. The average age of these patients was 64 years and the sexes were equally represented. Twenty-three patients (74%) had a disease with either an autoimmune aetiology or associated with circulating immune complexes or autoantibodies. Sera from 16 patients were tested for the presence of circulating immune complexes in addition to the alkaline phosphatase immune complex, and these complexes were detected in 14 cases (88%). Sera from 17 patients were tested for the presence of specific autoantibodies and these were detected in 9 cases (53%). Twelve patients were followed up for a mean period of 11.6 months (range 0.5 to 39 month). At the end of the follow-up period, 10 patients (83%) showed persistence of the immunoglobulin-G-alkaline phosphatase complex.