There is an extremely active and close-unit group of workers collaborating internationally on all aspects of the antiphospholipid syndrome. Studies include genetics, the clotting mechanisms, newer treatments and links with other auto-immune diseases and so on.

There are major international conferences every year and a rapidly growing library of publications from around the world. In fact, there are so many international research articles, it is not possible for us to list every single one but many of them can be found in the journal LUPUS.

Clinical studies are going on in units throughout the world. The unit at St Thomas' for example, publishes up to 40 research papers and international collaboration is central to our work. In the last few years, we have carried out studies with groups in Japan, France, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal and America.

Since 1985, when Professor Hughes started the first International APS meeting, the research efffot has gained significant momentum and now the International Congress on Antiphospholipid Antibodies attracts over a thousand doctors. There is even an international antiphospholipid website which provides information about the Congress plus extensive coverage of international research papers.

Collaborative research studies are also regularly carried out for the Euro Phospholipid project, and other countries such as the US are beginning to pioneer new research studies such as APSCORE.