Leukocytapheresis in inclusion body myositis

✍ Scribed by Peter C. Dau

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1987
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 285 KB
• Volume: 3
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0733-2459
• DOI: 10.1002/jca.2920030308

✦ Synopsis

A patient with inclusion body niyositis was treated with a course of 22 leukocytaphereses combined with prednisone and azathioprine therapy. He improved clinically during an induction phase of frequent cytapheresis, which reduced the circulating levels of T lymphocytes and monocytes and decreased the ratio of the T4' to T8+ lymphocyte subsets. During subsequent maintenance cytapheresis there was partial recovery of the T4' population without recovery of T8' lymphocytes, and the patient lost most of his clinical improvement. In contrast to T lymphocytes and nionocytes. there was no persistent reduction in circulating B lymphocyte levels during the course of therapy. T8' lymphocyte populations may regenerate more slowly than T4+ lymphocytes following depletion with leukocyatpheresis combined with prednisone and azathioprine therapy. A loss of of T8' suppressor relative to T4' helper-cell function could lead to an intensification of autoin~mune conditions.