Acquired factor XII Deficiency in a patient with nephrotic syndrome.

A patient with nephrotic syndrome and an acquired factor XII deficiency associated with a factor XII-like procoagulant activity in the urine was investigated. The urinary protein with procoagulant activity was isolated and comparative investigations revealed similar properties to plasma factor XII. It is suggested that the acquired coagulation defect may result from an insufficient biosynthetic capacity to compensate for the loss of factor XII in the urine.