title: Use of recombinant factor VIIa in inherited and acquired von Willebrand disease.
abstract: Recombinant factor VIIa (rFVIIa) is increasingly used outside the labeled indications for the treatment of life-threatening bleeding episodes after failure of respective standard therapy. In this article, the authors focus on the use of the agent in patients with inherited or acquired von Willebrand disease (vWD). Although the current experience is sparse, published cases indicate the high efficacy of rFVIIa for the treatment of patients refractory to conventional treatment. The agent may be used in patients with congenital vWD complicated by alloantibodies directed against substituted von Willebrand factor or in the presence of concomitant hemostatic defects as well as acquired vWD with hitherto limited therapeutic options. Controlled clinical studies are necessary to define the use of rFVIIa in this clinical setting.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hemostasis and Transfusion Medicine, Heinrich Heine University Medical Center, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sucker
authors.forename: Rüdiger E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Scharf
authors.forename: Rainer B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Zotz
mesh_terms: D015942:Factor VIIa / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014842:von Willebrand Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control
chemical_list: D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C103587:recombinant FVIIa; D015942:Factor VIIa