A novel system of LDL apheresis combining a centrifugal plasma separator with a specific LDL adsorption column

A novel system of low density lipoprotein (LDL) apheresis for familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) was developed, combining a centrifugal plasma separator (IBM-2997) with a new adsorption column specific to lipoproteins containing apolipoprotein B (apo-B), and its operation was compared to previous methods. The present system selectively removed LDL without the substantial reduction of high density lipoprotein that was seen with other methods using membrane filters. The capacity for LDL removal was slightly more reduced with the adsorption column than with the membrane filters when a single column was used. Since the ability to obtain plasma in the centrifugal system was much higher than in the system using membrane filters for plasma separation, efficient apheresis could be performed in a much shorter time, without making an arterio-venous shunt. Remixing of blood cells, such as platelets, with the separated plasma sometimes raises the pressure within the plasma component separator, but the problem could be avoided by withdrawing the buffy coat fraction, using the WBC pump of the IBM separator. In conclusion, the novel system, combining the centrifugal plasma separator with the adsorption column, has proved, in our hands, to be a more useful and more convenient method than those previously used for the treatment of severe FH.