Therapeutic plasma adsorption. A review.
Alternative techniques to the traditional plasma exchange are emerging in clinical practice for the treatment of different pathological conditions, particularly autoimmune diseases. Filtration is a technique used to separate blood cells from plasma, which may be further "treated" with other filters or columns. The case for cascade filtration and absorption onto a column is becoming stronger and stronger and the patient population is increasing. Alongside the "historical" techniques of adsorption onto a column, new systems (pairs of self-regenerating columns) and new products (columns with dextran sulphate, tryptophane, anti-human lipoprotein antibodies) are now available. Protein A in particular seems to open up new horizons; in therapeutic plasmapheresis, there are two versions, one Swedish and the other American, based on different theoretical premises and obtaining different results, with different biocompatibilities but good clinical results.
Blood Transfusion Centre, University Hospital of Firenze, Italy.
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G
Avanzi
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Cepparrone
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R
Lombardo
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Di Pietro
D000327:Adsorption; D005374:Filtration; D006801:Humans; D010956:Plasmapheresis / Q000379:methods*