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Extracorporeal membrane differential filtration--a new and safe method to optimize hemorheology in acute ischemic
J Berrouschot1, H Barthel, C Scheel
1Department of Neurology, University of Leipzig, Germany.
Objective:
Can extracorporeal membrane differential filtration be used on patients with acute stroke to optimize their hemorheology without reducing the number of oxygen carriers (erythrocytes) - and is this form of treatment safe?
Subjects And Methods:
In a prospective pilot study, 10 patients (67+/-4 years) suffering severe middle cerebral artery (MCA) stroke were treated with membrane differential filtration, which was first performed within 12 h following the onset of symptoms and repeated three times at intervals of 24 h. Hemorheological parameters were measured before and after each treatment session.
Results:
Extracorporeal membrane differential filtration treatment immediately led to a significant and sustained drop in all hemorheological parameters (fibrinogen by 54%, alpha2-macroglobulin by 76%, total cholesterol by 65%, LDL by 82%, and HDL by 38%). Plasma viscosity dropped from 1.3 to 1.1 mPa s, erythrocyte aggregation by 57%. By contrast, hematocrit and the erythrocyte count remained constant. Treatment had no side-effects.
Conclusions:
Extracorporeal membrane differential filtration is a safe method to optimize hemorheology in patients with acute ischemic stroke.