title: Acquired von Willebrand disease in monoclonal gammapathies: effectiveness of high-dose intravenous gamma globulin.
abstract: The reported underlying lymphoproliferative disorders associated with acquired von Willebrand disease (AvWD) include benign monoclonal gammapathy, multiple myeloma, Waldenström disease, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and hairy cell leukemia. The AvWD in patients with a monoclonal gammapathy and/or a lymphoproliferative disorder is featured by a prolonged bleeding time, normal platelet count, and a decreased or absent ristocetine-induced platelet aggregation in combination with a prolonged aPTT and normal PT due to low levels of factor VIII/von Willebrand factor (vWF) parameters in the absence of a factor VIII inhibitor in the Bethesda assay. In vitro and vivo experiments consistently showed that the anti-vWF autoantibodies in monoclonal gammapathies cause a rapid clearance of the factor VIII/vWF complex from the circulation after DDAVP and factor VIII/vWF concentrate infusion. Multimeric analysis of the vWF usually show a type II-like AvWD due to the absence of large vWF multimers as the consequence of the rapid clearance of the anti-vWF-factor VIII/vWF complex from the circulation. There is a poor response to intravenous DDAVP and factor VIII/vWF concentrate infusion, but high dose intravenous gamma globulin (1 g/kg for 2 days) usually induces a transient correction of the factor VIII/vWF parameters for 1 to a few weeks.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Hematology, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Michiels
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: van Vliet
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001760:Bleeding Time; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D010265:Paraproteinemias / Q000150:complications*; D010976:Platelet Count; D005719:gamma-Globulins / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D014842:von Willebrand Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D005719:gamma-Globulins