A case report of the therapeutic effect of cryofiltration in a patient with glucocorticoid-resistant ulcerative colitis.
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is characterized by chronic inflammation of the colon and its cause and pathogenesis have not been fully clarified. Although UC is treated with various drugs, including 5-amino-salycilate and glucocorticoids, some patients are resistant to them. It was recently reported that apheresis, such as leukocytapheresis and granulocytapheresis, improves intestinal inflammation in refractory cases of UC. On the other hand, cryofiltration, in which plasma apheresis is used to remove immunoglobulin and immune complexes, has been used for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. We herein report a case of glucocorticoid-resistant UC successfully treated with cryofiltration. Interestingly, the level of interleukin-10 (IL-10) in the patient's serum was markedly increased after eight sessions of cryofiltration. This suggests that cryofiltration suppresses intestinal inflammation, in part via up-regulation of IL-10.
Ohkawara
Tatsuya
T
Department of Gastroenterology, Sapporo Hokuyu Hospital, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan. tokawara@med.hokudai.ac.jp
Saito
Masao
M
Nakagawa
Souichi
S
Ohizumi
Hiroko
H
Tamaki
Toru
T
Yonekawa
Motoki
M
Takeda
Hiroshi
H
Asaka
Masahiro
M
Nishihira
Jun
J
Kawamura
Akio
A
D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000328:Adult; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex / Q000097:blood; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D017679:Cryotherapy; D004351:Drug Resistance; D005260:Female; D005374:Filtration; D006801:Humans; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000097:blood; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000097:blood; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones; D000936:Antigen-Antibody Complex; D007136:Immunoglobulins; D016753:Interleukin-10