Heat-treated factor VIII/von Willebrand factor concentrate in platelet-type von Willebrand's disease.
Cryoprecipitate has proved to correct the hemostatic defects in von Willebrand's disease (vWD) and platelet-type vWD. However, recent studies have revealed that transmission of the AIDS retrovirus (HIV) occurs through exposure to blood products including cryoprecipitate. Treatment with heat-treated factor VIII/von Willebrand factor (vWf) concentrates may have certain advantages over treatment with nonheated products, if these preparations are efficacious in these disorders. We found that a commercially available factor VIII/vWf concentrate, Haemate P, contained the high-molecular-weight multimers of vWf and had a ratio of ristocetin cofactor (RCof) to vWf antigen (vWf:Ag) close to unity. In addition, its capacity to directly induce aggregation of platelet-type vWD platelets in vitro was similar to that for cryoprecipitate. When infused into a patient with platelet-type vWD, Haemate P shortened the prolonged bleeding time and caused spontaneous platelet aggregation in vitro with a mild diminution of platelet count. These results indicate that some of the heat-treated factor VIII/vWf concentrates may provide a safer, yet still effective, treatment for platelet-type vWD.
D005169:Factor VIII / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D010974:Platelet Aggregation / Q000187:drug effects; D012310:Ristocetin / Q000494:pharmacology; D014842:von Willebrand Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D014841:von Willebrand Factor / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D014841:von Willebrand Factor; D012310:Ristocetin; D005169:Factor VIII