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Biomedical subjects

L M Aledort

Publications and source records attributed to L M Aledort.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

Concurrence of von Willebrand's disease and hemophilia A: implications for carrier detection and prevalence.

Five families with concurrent von Willebrand's disease (VWD) and classic hemophilia (hemophilia A) are described. Three were ascertained through women undergoing hemophilia carrier testing, one through an obligate carrier who also has VWD, and one through the affected father of a hemophiliac. The VWD probands exhibited Type I VWD with reduced Factor VIII-related antigen (VIIIR:Ag) and/or von Willebrand factor on more than one occasion, normal VIIIR:Ag on crossed immunoelectrophoresis, and mild symptoms. No male had both disorders, but two obligate hemophilia carriers also had VWD. Neither was detectable as a carrier by discriminant analysis. Four possible carriers of hemophilia had VWD and would also be classified as noncarriers statistically. These findings suggest that the presence of VWD may invalidate hemophilia carrier testing by conventional methods. The independent entry into the family of the two genes by mating of a hemophilia carrier and a VWD male is documented in two cases and probable in two. The observed frequency of such matings supports the hypothesis that VWD is a common disorder.

Adolescent↗

Disseminated intravascular coagulation.

Known variously as disseminated intravascular coagulation, defibrination consumption coagulopathy or, more simply, as defibrination, disseminated intravascular coagulation is a serious epiphenomenon that occurs most often as a complicating factor of an underlying disease process. Although frequently triggered by underlying disease such as infection or tumor, if not recognized and treated appropriately, disseminated intravascular coagulation alone may lead to the patient's death as a result of hemorrhage or thrombosis, or both, of vital organs. Frequently, it may only manifest itself as an abnormality of coagulation tests, causing no immediate problem for the patient, and potentially normalizing when the inciting cause is appropriately managed. The central process that marks disseminated intravascular coagulation is the generation of thrombin in the circulating blood by means of the activation of the coagulation mechanism, leading to the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin, which, in turn, may lead to thrombosis mainly of the microcirculation. Because platelets and coagulation factors are consumed and fibrinolysis is enhanced during the coagulation process, hemorrhage may also ensue. Although disseminated intravascular coagulation is frequently encountered in medical and obstetric patients, the difficulty in diagnosis and controversy regarding optimal therapy are frustrating for both patient and physician. By understanding the pathophysiology of disseminated intravascular coagulation and combining clinical observation and laboratory data, one can arrive at the appropriate diagnosis. Therapy must be individualized, and assessment of the benefit versus risk ratio of intervention must be made. Early recognition of acute and life-threatening disseminated intravascular coagulation can be lifesaving with appropriate supportive measures.

Acute Disease↗

Much to know.

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Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome among patients attending hemophilia treatment centers and mortality experience of hemophiliacs in the United States.

The acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was first recognized among hemophiliacs in 1982. The authors have conducted investigations to determine the onset and incidence of AIDS among hemophiliacs and to determine trends in hemophilia mortality since the introduction of clotting-factor concentrates in the late 1960s. A survey of United States hemophilia treatment centers, supported by the Centers for Disease Control and the National Hemophilia Foundation, defined a population of hemophiliacs which was monitored for AIDS cases through June 1984. Death reports from the United States Vital Statistics System and from the hemophilia treatment center survey provided mortality trends for 1968-1979 and for 1978-1982, respectively. The results of these investigations demonstrate the following points. 1) The AIDS epidemic is a new and important cause of illness and mortality among hemophiliacs, although a very low incidence of AIDS among hemophiliacs prior to 1982 cannot be ruled out. 2) The AIDS cases who attended the surveyed hemophilia treatment centers were distributed throughout the United States and were older than hemophilia treatment center patients without AIDS. AIDS cases also used more lyophilized clotting-factor concentrate, but only a small number of cases were reported with this information. 3) Improved care for hemophilia, including the use of clotting-factor concentrates, dramatically reduced hemophilia mortality rates during the 1970s. 4) In 1982, hemorrhage was the major cause of death among hemophiliacs. Deaths from non-alcoholic liver disease were also increased. AIDS incidence among hemophilia treatment center attendees was stable at 0.6 cases per 1,000 hemophilia treatment center attendees per year during 1982 and 1983 but increased sharply to 5.4 cases per 1,000 during the first quarter of 1984.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

A study of liver biopsies and liver disease among hemophiliacs.

Hepatic histologic materials (biopsy or autopsy) and associated clinical data from 155 hemophiliacs were collected by an ad hoc hemophilia study group and analyzed retrospectively in an effort to determine the spectrum of liver disease in this population and to examine the relationship between the severity of liver disease and treatment history. Clinical information on the frequency of complications from 126 biopsies in 115 hemophilic patients provided a unique opportunity to assess the safety of liver biopsy in such patients. The incidence of cirrhosis (15%) and chronic active hepatitis (7%) was lower than previously reported. The frequency of severe liver disease (chronic active hepatitis or cirrhosis) in patients receiving large pooled concentrates was no greater than in patients treated principally with cryoprecipitate or plasma. The risks of liver biopsy in this setting are relatively high: clinically significant hemorrhage followed 12.5% of the procedures.

Alanine Transaminase↗

Long-term follow-up of hemophiliacs with lymphocytopenia or thrombocytopenia.

Immunologic abnormalities resembling those seen in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are frequently observed in multitransfused but otherwise healthy individuals with hemophilia. To determine whether there was clinical or laboratory evidence to suggest an abnormality of immunoregulation in persons with hemophilia before the recognition of AIDS, we examined data collected by the Hemophilia Study Group from 1975 to 1979 on 1,551 patients with factor VIII deficiency. The prevalence of lymphocytopenia and thrombocytopenia in patients over 5 years of age on entry was found to be 9.3% (94/1,013) and 5.0% (26/518), respectively. These rates were significantly different from a normal population (P less than .00001 and less than .0003). No cases meeting the definition of AIDS were noted during the study. However, on follow-up in 1984 of a cohort of 79 patients with thrombocytopenia or lymphocytopenia on two or more occasions during the study, eight patients (10%) with AIDS-related abnormalities, including idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, generalized lymphadenopathy, and oral moniliasis without obvious cause were identified. Of the 79 patients, liver disease accounted for five of the ten deaths (12.6% mortality) observed during a minimum follow-up of five years after detection of cytopenia. Only one death was attributed to bleeding in the absence of liver disease. We conclude that (a) the frequency of lymphocytopenia and thrombocytopenia was increased in multitransfused factor VIII-deficient hemophiliacs before the advent of AIDS, and (b) persistent lymphocytopenia and thrombocytopenia appear to be strongly associated with liver disease, which was the leading cause of death in a cohort of hemophiliacs followed five or more years.

Acute Kidney Injury↗

AIDS in hemophilia.

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Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

AIDS: an update.

Although there is no epidemiologic evidence for increased spread of the disease to non-high-risk groups, many investigators speculate that AIDS may be caused by an infectious agent that can be transmitted through blood or blood products. If this hypothesis proves to be correct, dramatic public measures will have to be implemented with respect to blood banking policies.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Autoplex versus proplex: a controlled, double-blind study of effectiveness in acute hemarthroses in hemophiliacs with inhibitors to factor VIII.

In view of uncontrolled observations and anecdotal reports suggesting that the activated PCC, Autoplex, was much more effective than standard (non-activated) PCC in controlling bleeding in hemophiliacs with inhibitors, a controlled double-blind study was designed to compare the effectiveness of Autoplex and Proplex. Acute hemarthrosis was chosen for study as this common but non-life-threatening lesion lends itself well to controlled study. A single dose of "unknown" product (Autoplex 75 FECU/kg; Autoplex 50 FECU/kg; or Proplex 75 FIX U/kg) was given, and effectiveness was judged at 6 hr. By all criteria of efficacy, there were no significant differences between the products. It is noteworthy that a single dose of PCC was judged effective in 50% of episodes, a figure that is consistent with other published clinical trials. In this model, no additional benefit was derived from using the activated PCC, Autoplex, in either dosage.

Blood Coagulation Factors↗