Far to the left-field of my normal research, I'm pursuing a new hypothesis: whether there is a connection between 

• people who get envenomated by the asp caterpillar, and
• the acquisition of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS)

At first blush, these seem clinically unconnected.  The first involves a venomous caterpillar, and the second involves an acquired disorder that increases the chance of stroke or other blood-clotting problems.  However, I have a nagging suspicion that the two are related -- that is, that the former might lead to the latter.  I've read every paper on the geographical variations in APS, but so far no study would be capable of addressing this hypothesis.  So I'm turning to the net. If you have been envenomated by the asp caterpillar at some point in your life, and if you have a current diagnosis of antiphospholipid syndrome (also known sometimes as antiphospholipid antibody syndrome), please email me to get in touch: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  I'm not asking for any detailed patient information from you; for the moment, I simply want to gain a rough estimate of how common the co-occurrence is.  Thank you in advance for your help in addressing the origins of this still-mysterious clinical disorder.