Intensive plasma exchange, complement dependent microcytotoxicity and renal transplant rejection.
Intensive plasma exchange (IPE) was used to treat 13 rejection episodes in eight renal transplant recipients with biopsy evidence of humoral rejection. Prior to IPE, each patients had several rejection episodes treated with high dose steroids. The IPE-treated rejections had not responded to conventional anti-rejection therapy and all patients appeared likely to lose their grafts. IPE reversed 7 of the 13 rejections (5 of 8 patients responded). Two of the 8 grafts continue to have adequate function 6 and 8 months after IPE. IPE temporarily reverses rejection but not increase long term graft survival.
D001803:Blood Transfusion; D003165:Complement System Proteins; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D006084:Graft Rejection; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000503:physiopathology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
D003165:Complement System Proteins