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Therapeutic Apheresis (therapeutic + apheresis)
Selected AbstractsThe Italian registry of pediatric therapeutic apheresis: A report on activity during 2005JOURNAL OF CLINICAL APHERESIS, Issue 1 2009Giustina De Silvestro Abstract The results of the 2005 Survey of the Italian Society for Apheresis and Cell Manipulation (SIdEM) reporting on the pediatric procedures carried out in 18 Italian Apheresis Units are presented here. Utilizing a standardized questionnaire, the survey collected data on techniques, types of blood separators, clinical indications, and adverse events. A total of 1,693 apheresis procedures were carried out in 355 pediatric patients: 219 plasma-exchange, 291 peripheral blood stem cell collections, 791 extracorporeal photochemotherapy (ECP), 265 LDL-apheresis, 71 erythro-exchange, 9 cytoreductive apheresis, 47 immunoadsorption sessions. Adverse events were registered in 94 procedures (5.6%), most of which of mild entity, e.g., insufficient flow rate (50.0%) and symptomatic hypocalcemia (24.4%). Our data indicate that all types of apheresis procedures can be safely carried out in children. ECP, utilized primarily for the treatment of graft versus host disease (GvHD) and rejection of solid organ transplantation, are burgeoning procedures in pediatric patients, whereas plasma exchange, which is a common treatment in adults, is infrequently utilized in pediatric medicine. J. Clin. Apheresis, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Standardized protocol to identify high-risk patients undergoing therapeutic apheresis proceduresJOURNAL OF CLINICAL APHERESIS, Issue 3 2008Qun Lu Abstract As the scope of therapeutic apheresis (TA) expands and more procedures are requested for critically ill patients, adverse reactions (AR) associated with TA become a major concern for physicians, nurses, patients and their families. To assess the risks for ARs associated with patients' underlying diseases, we developed a preprocedure assessment tool with a set of high-risk criteria which included: (1) unstable vital signs, (2) active nonphysiological bleeding, (3) evidence of severe bronchoconstriction, (4) severe anemia, (5) projected extracorporeal volume (ECV) >15% of total blood volume (TBV) in adults or >10% of TBV in pediatric patients, (6) pregnancy, and (7) conditions requiring continuous nursing support. A standard operating procedure with a "Request for Apheresis Procedure on High-Risk Patient" form and protocol were developed to identify patients as high-risk before initiation of a TA procedure. Here we report our experience in the 3-year period following the implementation of this protocol. During this period, a total of 3,254 TA procedures were performed, 44 of which were for patients identified as high-risk by the protocol. The incidence of overall ARs was 8% for all TA procedures and 45.5% for procedures performed for high-risk patients. The incidence of moderate-to-severe ARs was 3.7% for all TA procedures and 36.4% for procedures performed for high-risk patients. The protocol identified a group of patients with an increased risk for ARs, especially moderate-to-severe reactions during and/or immediately following TA. J. Clin. Apheresis, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The new approach to assignment of ASFA categories,Introduction to the fourth special issue: Clinical applications of therapeutic apheresis,,JOURNAL OF CLINICAL APHERESIS, Issue 3 2007Zbigniew M. Szczepiorkowski Abstract The American Society for Apheresis (ASFA) Apheresis Applications Committee is responsible for a review and categorization of indications for therapeutic apheresis. The results of the review process were previously published in 1986, 1993, and 2000 as the ASFA Special Issues. The ASFA categories consist of categories I through IV, and category P (pending). This article describes the novel methodology, based on structured systematic review of the published literature, used to assign categories for indications for therapeutic apheresis. This is the first time each entity is presented as a fact sheet, which summarizes the evidence for the use of therapeutic apheresis. A detailed description of the fact sheet format and the individual fact sheets for categories I through III and category P are presented in the main article of this Special Issue. The diseases assigned to category IV are discussed in a separate article in this issue. Information on how the Apheresis Applications Committee proposes to include new diseases for category assignment is also provided. J. Clin. Apheresis., 2007 © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] LDL Apheresis: A Novel Technique (LIPOCOLLECT 200)ARTIFICIAL ORGANS, Issue 12 2009Claudia Stefanutti Abstract Therapeutic means to lower Lp(a) are limited. The most effective method to reduce plasma Lp(a) concentration significantly is therapeutic apheresis, namely, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) apheresis. A novel technique based on reusable LDL adsorber called Lipocollect 200 (Medicollect, Rimbach, Germany) allows the removal of both LDL and Lp(a) from plasma. Two male patients with hyperLp(a)lipoproteinemia and angiographically established progressive coronary heart disease, without rough elevation of LDL-cholesterol, who did not respond to diet and medication were submitted to 50 LDL Lp(a) aphereses with Lipocollect 200 LDL Lp(a)-adsorber at weekly and biweekly intervals. Total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol plasma levels fell significantly by 48.3% (±6.7) to 61.6% (±12.7) (first patient), and 42.5% (±6.3) to 60.6% (±14.3) (second patient), respectively (all differences: P , 0.001). High-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol concentration in plasma did not show statistically significant change. Plasma triglycerides were also significantly reduced by 43.6% (±24.4) (first patient) and 42.3% (±13) (second patient) (both differences: P , 0.001). Plasma Lp(a) showed a statistically significant percent reduction in plasma as expected: 64.7 ± 9.5 (first patient), and 59.1 ± 6.7 (second patient) (both differences: P , 0.001). Plasma fibrinogen concentration was decreased by 35.9% (±18.7) (P , 0.05) (first patient) and 41.8% (±11.5) (second patient) (P , 0.005). Considering the reduction rate between the first and the last procedures, we have compared the mean percent reduction of the first five treatments (from session #1 to #5) with the last five treatments (from session #21 to #25). We have observed an increasing reduction of all activity parameters on both patients apart from HDL-cholesterol (first patient) and triglyceride (second patient) that showed a decreasing reduction rate. Both patients followed the prescribed schedule and completed the study. Clinically, all sessions were well tolerated and undesired reactions were not reported. The Lipocollect 200 adsorber proved to have a good biocompatibility. In this study, the adsorber reusability for several sessions was confirmed. [source] |