[Anti-thymocyte globulin therapy in severe aplastic anemia: an alternative to bone marrow transplantation].
Eight patients with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) and two patients with congenital hypoplastic anemia (CHA) were treated with absorbed samples of rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) at a total dose of 50-75 mg/kg body weight intravenously over 5 days. Duration of the disease was 1-14 years. Median age of the ten patients was 11 (4-15) years. Four of the eight patients with SAA were responders and transfusion independent for a follow up of 11 to 50 months. In two cases thrombocytopenia of about 100 000/mm3 is present. Four patients were non-responders three of them died in the meantime by the underlining disease. Two patients with CHA did not respond to ATG treatment. The CFU-C level of all eight patients with SAA before treatment was severely decreased. In co-culture studies with normal bone marrow no growth inhibition of normal bone marrow could be demonstrated. Also 20% patients serum did not inhibit normal bone marrow growth. The results are compared with data from literature and discussed in respect to alternative therapies.
D000293:Adolescent; D000741:Anemia, Aplastic / Q000628:therapy*; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003114:Colony-Forming Units Assay; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D017707:Erythrocyte Transfusion; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006084:Graft Rejection; D006801:Humans; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D017713:Platelet Transfusion
D007518:Isoantibodies; C035678:anti-Thy antibody
Anti-Thymozyten-Globulin Therapie bei schwerer aplastischer Anämie: eine Alternative zur Knochenmarkstransplantation.