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Blood, 1 August 2005, Vol. 106, No. 3, pp. 925-928. Prepublished online as a Blood First Edition Paper on April 12, 2005; DOI 10.1182/blood-2004-12-4885. This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 2004-12-4885v1 106/3/925    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Rights and Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Galbusera, M. Articles by Remuzzi, G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Galbusera, M. Articles by Remuzzi, G. Related Collections Hemostasis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology Immunotherapy Brief Reports Clinical Trials and Observations Social Bookmarking                   What's this?  Previous Article  |  Table of Contents  |  Next Article  HEMOSTASIS, THROMBOSIS, AND VASCULAR BIOLOGY Brief report Rituximab prevents recurrence of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura: a case report Miriam Galbusera, Elena Bresin, Marina Noris, Sara Gastoldi, Daniela Belotti, Cristina Capoferri, Erica Daina, Paolo Perseghin, Friedrich Scheiflinger, Fadi Fakhouri, Jean-Pierre Grünfeld, Enrico Pogliani, and Giuseppe Remuzzi From the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Clinical Research Center for Rare Diseases, Aldo e Cele Daccò, Villa Camozzi-Ranica; the Unit of Hematology and the Immunohematology and Blood Trasfusion Center, Ospedale San Gerardo, Monza, Italy; Baxter BioScience, Biomedical Research Center, Uferstrasse 15, A-2304 Orth/Donau, Austria; the Unit of Nephrology, Hospital Necker, Paris, France; and the Unit of Nephrology and Dialysis, Azienda Ospedaliera, Ospedali Riuniti di Bergamo, Italy. Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare disorder of small vessels that is associated with deficiency of the von Willebrand factor–cleaving protease, ADAMTS13. The presence of anti-ADAMTS13 autoantibodies is considered a factor predisposing to relapses. Despite close monitoring and intensive plasma treatment, in these patients acute episodes are still associated with substantial morbidity and mortality rates, and the optimal therapeutic option should be prevention of relapses. This study was conducted in a patient with recurrent TTP due to high titers of ADAMTS13 inhibitors, who used to have 2 relapses of TTP a year. The study compared the standard treatment plasma exchange with rituximab. Results documented that plasma exchange had only a small transient effect on ADAMTS13 activity and inhibitors; on the contrary, prophylaxis with rituximab was associated with disappearance of anti-ADAMTS13 antibodies, a progressive recovery of protease activity, and it allowed the patient to maintain a disease-free state during a more than 2-year follow-up. CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this? This article has been cited by other articles: J. E. Sadler Von Willebrand factor, ADAMTS13, and thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura Blood, July 1, 2008; 112(1): 11 - 18. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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