title: Mixed-type auto-immune haemolytic anaemia in a patient with HIV infection.
abstract: A young HIV-infected patient presented with a severe auto-immune haemolytic anaemia with both warm and cold auto-antibodies, an infrequent category of anti-erythrocyte auto-immunity. Serological findings were compatible with the presence of a low-titre, high-thermal-amplitude anti-I cold-reacting antibody and a pan-reactive warm-reactive auto-antibody. Immunochemical characterisation of the warm antibody failed to identify any membrane protein acting as auto-antigen. This is, to our knowledge, the first reported case of mixed-type auto-immune haemolytic anaemia in a patient with HIV infection. Overt haemolysis is a very rare complication in HIV-infected patients, despite the high prevalence of a positive direct antiglobulin test reported in these patients. This suggests that HIV infection is a condition in which anti-erythrocyte auto-immunity is a serological finding without haemolytic effects in the large majority of cases.
authors.affiliation: Servizio Immunotrasfusionale e Analisi Cliniche, IRCCS Centro di Riferimento Oncologico, Aviano, Italia.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: De Angelis
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Biasinutto
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pradella
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Errante
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000744:Anemia, Hemolytic, Autoimmune / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies