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Chapter 53 – The use of therapeutic apheresis in allergic and immunological diseases

Allergic and Immunologic Diseases

A Practical Guide to the Evaluation, Diagnosis and Management of Allergic and Immunologic Diseases 2022, Pages 1527-1583

Apheresis is a term for a group of extracorporeal treatments in which blood is separated into its components, with some components being discarded and replaced or subsequently modified. The replacement fluids/cells or modified components, along with the remainder of the blood, are then returned to the patient. These procedures can alter the immune system, both humoral and cellular, and have been used to treat a variety of common and uncommon immunologic diseases beginning in the late 1950s. The basic background information important for understanding those apheresis procedures used to treat immunologic disorders as well as the important patient considerations are discussed. A synopsis of immunologic diseases treated with apheresis, based upon the American Society for Apheresis Guidelines for the use of apheresis in clinical practice, is provided including treatment schedules and “dosing,” patient evaluation and laboratory monitoring, and the proposed mechanism of action. Unique considerations for each treatment, such as their effects on patient management and concurrent therapies, are also discussed. Apheresis is a group of related therapies that can effectively treat several immunologic diseases with a growing but still a limited base of published evidence.

The use of therapeutic apheresis in allergic and immunological diseases – ScienceDirect

Scientific corner

Nonbiological therapeutic management of ulcerative colitis

Nicolò Mezzina 1Sophia Elizabeth Campbell Davies 2Sandro Ardizzone 1 Expert Opin Pharmacother 2018 Nov;19(16):1747-1757. doi: 10.1080/14656566.2018.1525361. Epub 2018 Sep 27.

Introduction: Treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) is constantly evolving. In the last two decades, new therapeutic strategies have been implemented by addressing specific disease mechanisms: biological agents against tumor necrosis factor-α and integrins are now widely used, and more agents targeting different pathological pathways are being marketed. Despite these novel therapies, nonbiological drugs are still the mainstay of treatment, especially in mild-to-moderate disease, since a proven safety and tolerability profile is observed. Excellent efficacy both in induction and maintenance of remission is obtained, with a lower cost compared to biological agents. Areas covered: The purpose of this review is to summarize the current knowledge and the latest clinical evidence regarding nonbiological therapies for UC. Expert opinion: Concomitant administration of oral and rectal 5-aminosalicylates acid is more effective in the treatment of UC in remission. Corticosteroids are the treatment of choice in patients with moderately severe or severe UC. The association of azathioprine with biological treatments is more effective than monotherapy. Cyclosporine is an effective drug in severe UC, but its poor management must be considered. Probiotics are very popular; however, evidence on their actual role in UC still must be demonstrated; cytapheresis plays only a niche role at this time.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30220228/

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14656566.2018.1525361?journalCode=ieop20

Scientific corner

Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for inflammatory bowel disease

Katsuyoshi Matsuoka 1Taku Kobayashi 1Fumiaki Ueno 2 3Toshiyuki Matsui 1Fumihito Hirai 1Nagamu Inoue 1Jun Kato 1Kenji Kobayashi 1Kiyonori Kobayashi 1Kazutaka Koganei 1Reiko Kunisaki 1Satoshi Motoya 1Masakazu Nagahori 1Hiroshi Nakase 1Fumio Omata 1Masayuki Saruta 1Toshiaki Watanabe 1Toshiaki Tanaka 1Takanori Kanai 1Yoshinori Noguchi 1Ken-Ichi Takahashi 1Kenji Watanabe 1Toshifumi Hibi 1Yasuo Suzuki 1Mamoru Watanabe 1Kentaro Sugano 1Tooru Shimosegawa 1 , J Gastroenterol. 2018 Mar;53(3):305-353.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic disorder involving mainly the intestinal tract, but possibly other gastrointestinal and extraintestinal organs. Although etiology is still uncertain, recent knowledge in pathogenesis has accumulated, and novel diagnostic and therapeutic modalities have become available for clinical use. Therefore, the previous guidelines were urged to be updated. In 2016, the Japanese Society of Gastroenterology revised the previous versions of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD) in Japanese. A total of 59 clinical questions for 9 categories (1. clinical features of IBD; 2. diagnosis; 3. general consideration in treatment; 4. therapeutic interventions for IBD; 5. treatment of UC; 6. treatment of CD; 7. extraintestinal complications; 8. cancer surveillance; 9. IBD in special situation) were selected, and a literature search was performed for the clinical questions with use of the MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Igaku Chuo Zasshi databases. The guidelines were developed with the basic concept of the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system. Recommendations were made using Delphi rounds. This English version was produced and edited based on the existing updated guidelines in Japanese.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29429045/

Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for inflammatory bowel disease – PMC (nih.gov)

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