Sneddon's Syndrome Is a Thrombotic Vasculopathy

We report the first case of pathologic findings from brain biopsy in a patient with Sneddon's syndrome. The observations suggest that Sneddon's syndrome is not a vasculitis but is more comparable to the autoimmune vasculopathies such as the antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Vascular thrombosis and emboli from cardiac sources are the likely causes of stroke in most cases. The success of warfarin in the treatment of antiphospholipid syndromes and the failure of immunosuppression and aspirin in the treatment of Sneddon's syndrome argue that warfarin anticoagulation may be the most appropriate intervention currently available.