Plasmapheresis in neurological disorders: Experience from a tertiary care hospital in South India

Abstract

Background: Therapeutic plasma exchange (PE) or plasmapheresis is the treatment of choice in many neurological disorders. Even though it is safe in experienced hands, there is a major concern about its safety among physicians. Objectives: To analyze our experience with 230 patients who underwent PE for various neurological disorders. Materials and Methods: Retrospective review of PE procedures done during a period of 48 months, from July 2007 to June 2011 in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India. Indications, clinical results and technical factors are discussed. Results: The main indication for PE was GBS (203 patients; 88.3%). Age of patients ranged from 14-65 (mean = 42.3 years). The most common complications were paraesthesias and/or cramps (36.1%) and hypotension (32.2%). Four pregnant patients who underwent PE had good recovery with one intrauterine death. There was no mortality. Conclusion: The analysis of 240 cases of PE done in our department shows that the procedure is safe, with only minimal procedure related complications and no mortality.

Keywords

• Continuous flow method
• Guillain-Barré syndrome
• plasmapheresis
• therapeutic plasma exchange