title: Successful anticoagulant therapy for two pregnant PNH patients, and prospects for the eculizumab era.
abstract: Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is an acquired stem cell disorder characterized by intravascular hemolysis and thrombosis. The most serious complication is thrombosis, the risk of which is augmented by the hyper-coagulable state that occurs during pregnancy; despite this risk, however, young female PNH patients often desire to have a baby. We recently experienced two successful deliveries in PNH patients, who were treated with anticoagulant therapy during their pregnancies. Meanwhile, given the potential benefit of eculizumab (Soliris), a humanized monoclonal antibody against C5, in reducing thrombosis and hemolysis, it represents a promising therapeutic option for the treatment of pregnant PNH patients in combination with, or in replacement of, anticoagulant therapy.
authors: Division of Hematology and Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kinki University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka-Sayama, Osaka, Japan. moriyasu@med.kindai.ac.jp
authors: Yasuyoshi
authors: Y
authors: Morita
authors: Jun-ichi
authors: J
authors: Nishimura
authors: Takahiro
authors: T
authors: Shimada
authors: Hirokazu
authors: H
authors: Tanaka
authors: Kentaro
authors: K
authors: Serizawa
authors: Yasuhiro
authors: Y
authors: Taniguchi
authors: Mitsuhiro
authors: M
authors: Tsuritani
authors: Yuzuru
authors: Y
authors: Kanakura
authors: Itaru
authors: I
authors: Matsumura
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006457:Hemoglobinuria, Paroxysmal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006495:Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000925:Anticoagulants; D006495:Heparin, Low-Molecular-Weight; C481642:eculizumab