A comprehensive program to minimize platelet outdating.

Background: Platelet (PLT) transfusions are essential for patients who are bleeding or have an increased risk of bleeding due to a decreased number or abnormal function of circulating PLTs. A shelf life of 5 days for PLT products presents an inventory management challenge. In 2006, greater than 10% of apheresis PLTs made in the United States outdated.

Factors affecting posttransfusion platelet increments, platelet refractoriness, and platelet transfusion intervals in thrombocytopenic patients.

A variety of patient and product-related factors influenced the outcome of 6379 transfusions given to 533 patients in the Trial to Reduce Alloimmunization to Platelets (TRAP). Responses measured were platelet increments, interval between platelet transfusions, and platelet refractoriness. Patient factors that improved platelet responses were splenectomy and increasing patient age.

Autologous bone marrow transplantation with 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide purging for acute myeloid leukaemia beyond first remission: a 10-year experience.

Between January 1987 and January 1997, 69 eligible patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) in either second (CR2) or third (CR3) complete remission (CR2 = 60, CR3 = 9) underwent 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide-purged autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT) at the Johns Hopkins Oncology Center. The patients' median age was 27 years (range 1-62) and all received busulphan and cyclophosphamide as their preparative regimen. The probability of event-free survival (EFS) at 5 years was 30% [95% Confidence Interval (CI): 19-42%] for CR2 patients and 22% (3-51%) for those in CR3, with a median follow up of 8 years in the surviving group.

A case of severe benign intrahepatic cholestasis treated with liver transplantation.

A male patient with benign recurrent cholestasis since age 2.5 yr developed unremitting cholestasis with incapacitating pruritus and hepatic fibrosis by age 21. He was tried on numerous medical therapies for pruritus with transient or no relief.