Factor VIII-related antigen in cerebrospinal fluid.

A hundred and one samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were obtained from patients with bacterial meningitis (18), viral meningitis (9), lymphoproliferative disorders (33), 15 with meningeal infiltrations, multiple sclerosis (8), stroke (8) and 25 subjects with normal CSF. All samples were studied for VIIIR:Ag with specific and sensitive immunoradiometric assay (IRMA) and Laurell's technique. Prothrombin and factor IX antigenic activities were investigated by Laurell's technique. Simultaneously, plasma specimens from ten patients with bacterial meningitis were evaluated. Only a selective increase of VIIIR:Ag was demonstrated in CSF from bacterial meningitis whereas prothrombin and factor IX were not detected. VIIIR:Ag plasma and CSF levels were uncorrelated. Similarly, no relationship could be established between the degree of elevation of VIIR:Ag in the CSF and their protein concentration. These findings suggest that VIIIR:Ag elevation in CSF has diagnostic value for bacterial meningitis and that disruption of the blood-brain barrier is not responsible for their elevated levels. Accordingly, the presence of VIIIR:Ag in CSF may be an indication of endothelial damage in the choroid plexi.

Response of factor VIII/von Willebrand factor to intranasal DDAVP in healthy subjects and mild haemophiliacs (with observations in patients with combined deficiency of factors V and VIII).

The effect of a single standard dose of intranasal DDAVP (260 micrograms) was investigated in healthy subjects and in patients with mild deficiencies of VIII:C. Changes in FVIII/VWF activities were measured from baseline after 30, 60, 120 and 360 min of administration of the drug. Intranasal DDAVP was followed by a two-fold increase of VIII:C in both groups studied. VIIIR:AG and VIIIR:RCo increased to a lesser extent. Even though FVIII/VWF activities reached their maximum after 60-120 min, a significant increase over baseline was still observed after 360 min. The rise of VIII:C was unrelated to the body weight of the patients and was proportional to the baseline levels of this factor. In two sisters with combined deficiencies of FV/FVIII, the responses in all activities of FVIII/VWF were similar to those seen in mild hemophiliacs. Factor V did not undergo any variation. No alteration in serum osmolarity and no consistent variation in blood pressure or pulse rate were noted. It is concluded that the i.n. administration of a single high dose of DDAVP might be adopted to provide an emergency aid in bleeding patients with mild to moderate haemophilia A and to yield higher VIII:C levels in blood donors.

Immunological markers in a coexisting chronic lymphocytic leukemia and Hodgkin's disease.

A 57 year old patient in whom Hodgkin's disease (HD) and Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) was simultaneously diagnosed is described. The infiltration of peripheral blood and bone marrow by mature lymphocytes, with special immunological phenotype (SIg negative, mouse rosette positive and monoclonal antibodies B1+, B4+) consistent with B-CLL and histological findings of lymphnode and axillary mass biopsies were typical of HD. The immunological study of the cell suspension from the axillary mass displayed a phenotype similar to that of the peripheral blood lymphocytes. Whether HD and CLL are two processes of fortuitous association, or a single clinical entity remains to be elucidated. The immunological findings in our patient suggest a common origin for both disorders and that HD could sometimes be the result of a B cell proliferation.