Guidelines on the Use of Therapeutic Apheresis in Clinical Practice - Evidence-Based Approach from the Writing Committee of the American Society for Apheresis: The Ninth Special Issue.

The American Society for Apheresis (ASFA) Journal of Clinical Apheresis (JCA) Special Issue Writing Committee is charged with reviewing, updating, and categorizing indications for the evidence-based use of therapeutic apheresis (TA) in human disease. In the Ninth Edition, the JCA Special Issue Writing Committee has incorporated systematic review and evidence-based approaches in the grading of evidence and categorization of apheresis indications to make recommendations on the use of apheresis in a wide variety of diseases and conditions. This edition has largely maintained the general layout and concept of a fact sheet introduced in the Fourth Edition (2007). Each fact sheet succinctly summarizes the evidence for the use of TA in a specific disease or medical condition. The Ninth Edition of the JCA Special Issue comprises 91 fact sheets and 166 graded and categorized indications. This includes seven new fact sheets, nine new indications on existing fact sheets, and eight changes in the category for existing indications. The Ninth Edition of the JCA Special Issue seeks to continue to serve as a key resource that guides the utilization of TA in the treatment of human disease.

The report from ASFA COVID-19 taskforce: Considerations and prioritization on apheresis procedures during the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Since vaccination for SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus started, the trajectory of patient numbers infected with the virus has improved once; however, variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged and more people have been infected; therefore, pandemic status is still far from resolution. Government and social efforts to prevent coronavirus infection continue in most states in the US and globally even after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared some restriction relief for fully vaccinated people in March 2021. Healthcare institutions and various professional organizations have developed guidelines or policies to prevent the spread of these coronaviruses in the setting of apheresis. In this report, the issues that apheresis services may encounter under the current COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease) pandemic will be discussed with potential strategies that can be adapted for efficient and optimum use of apheresis resources.

Report of the ASFA apheresis registry study on Wilson's disease.

PURPOSE: Wilson's disease is a rare autosomal recessive genetic disorder that results in accumulation of copper in the liver, brain, cornea and kidney. Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) has been used to remove copper and provide a bridge to liver transplantation. We report here the collective experiences through the ASFA apheresis registry on Wilson's disease. METHODS: The ASFA apheresis registry is a multi-center registry study. Both prospective and retrospective data, with the latter involving data collection back to January 2000 are entered in the registry. The registry includes patient demographics, apheresis procedural information, treatment schedules, and treatment outcomes and complications. RESULTS: A total of 10 patients (3 males and 7 females) with Wilson's disease treated between 2005 and 2013 were included. Median age of first diagnosis and first TPE were 16 and 17 years, respectively. Via central venous access, these patients underwent a total of 43 TPEs; the median number of TPE procedures per patient was 3.5. All of the TPEs used ACD-A as anticoagulation, 42/43 TPEs targeted 1-1.25 plasma volumes, and 41/43 TPEs were performed with 100% fluid balance. Post TPE procedures, 9 patients underwent liver transplantation; all 10 patients had at least a 6-month survival. CONCLUSIONS: All 10 patients with Wilson's disease who underwent TPE had a positive outcome in terms of 6-month survival. In this first report of the ASFA apheresis registry study, we have demonstrated the value of using this registry to collect apheresis-related patient outcomes from multiple centers.

Acute liver failure caused by herpes simplex virus in a pregnant patient: is there a potential role for therapeutic plasma exchange?

A young woman presented with a febrile illness in the third trimester of pregnancy. Laboratory investigation revealed severe acute hepatitis with thrombocytopenia and coagulopathy. Liver injury progressed despite emergent caesarian section and delivery of a healthy infant. Therefore, therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) was performed on three consecutive days post-partum for a presumed diagnosis of acute liver failure (ALF) associated with pregnancy due to hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets (HELLP) or acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP). Treatment with TPE was followed by biochemical and clinical improvement but during her recovery herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) infection was diagnosed serologically and confirmed histologically. Changes in the immune system during pregnancy make pregnant patients more susceptible to acute HSV hepatitis, HSV-related ALF, and death. The disease is characterized by massive hepatic inflammation with hepatocyte necrosis, mediated by both direct viral cytotoxicity and the innate humoral immune response. TPE may have a therapeutic role in acute inflammatory disorders such as HSV hepatitis by reducing viral load and attenuating systemic inflammation and liver cell injury. Further investigation is needed to clarify this potential effect. The roles of vigilance, clinical suspicion, and currently accepted therapies are emphasized.

Plasmapheresis in immunologically mediated polyneuropathies.

One of the most common uses of therapeutic plasmapheresis is for the treatment of immunologically mediated polyneuropathies. This paper discusses the use of plasmapheresis in Guillain-Barré syndrome, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, polyneuropathies associated with paraproteins, lower motor neuron syndromes, and polyneuropathies associated with HIV. As the pathogenesis of immunologically mediated polyneuropathies becomes better understood, newer therapies for these syndromes will evolve: however, therapeutic plasmapheresis is likely to continue to play a central role in the treatment of many of these diseases.