Publications by authors named "Raj Kasthuri"

Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a vascular dysplasia inherited as an autosomal dominant trait and caused by loss-of-function pathogenic variants in genes encoding proteins of the BMP signalling pathway. Up to 90% of disease-causal variants are observed in ENG and ACVRL1, with SMAD4 and GDF2 less frequently responsible for HHT. In adults, the most frequent HHT manifestations relate to iron deficiency and anaemia owing to recurrent epistaxis (nosebleeds) or bleeding from gastrointestinal telangiectases.

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Potential and emerging therapeutics for HHT.

Hematology Am Soc Hematol Educ Program

December 2024

A 64-year-old woman with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) characterized by a pathological variant in ACVRL1 presents to the clinic for follow-up. Manifestations of HHT include frequent epistaxis and gastrointestinal bleeding, leading to iron-deficiency anemia. Bevacizumab is initiated, with resolution of the anemia.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is a serious condition involving low platelet counts due to a deficiency in the enzyme ADAMTS13, often treated with rituximab to prevent relapses.
  • - A study using data from the USTMA registry found that the time without relapse (relapse-free survival or RFS) decreased after each rituximab treatment, particularly for Black patients, suggesting that the effectiveness of the drug diminishes with repeated use.
  • - Both the USTMA registry and a separate cohort from Johns Hopkins and the University of Minnesota indicated that Black patients experience a significantly higher risk of relapse with subsequent rituximab treatments, implying a need
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Article Synopsis
  • Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a genetic disorder that leads to severe nosebleeds and related health issues, primarily affecting patients' quality of life due to iron-deficiency anemia from frequent epistaxis.
  • A study was conducted where 144 participants were given either pomalidomide or a placebo for 24 weeks to assess the drug's effectiveness in reducing nosebleed severity and improving quality of life, with results favoring the pomalidomide group.
  • The results showed that those taking pomalidomide experienced a greater decrease in bleeding scores and improved quality-of-life measures, although there were some additional side effects observed in the pomalidomide group.
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Article Synopsis
  • - The ACTIV-4c trial examined the effectiveness of apixaban, given for 30 days after hospital discharge from COVID-19, but was halted early due to low rates of death or thromboembolism.
  • - Researchers aimed to find high-risk patients for whom post-discharge blood clot prevention might be beneficial by analyzing various factors like age, ethnicity, and D-dimer levels.
  • - Results showed that the overall occurrence of death and thromboembolism was low, especially in patients under 60, and the study concluded that there was no clear high-risk group that would benefit from additional blood clot prevention measures.
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Background: Mortality due to immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) remains significant. Predicting mortality risk may potentially help individualize treatment. The French Thrombotic Microangiopathy (TMA) Reference Score has not been externally validated in the United States.

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Background: Patients with suspected or newly diagnosed venous thromboembolism (VTE) are often referred to the emergency department (ED) for management, where anticoagulation is initiated. However, when the patient is judged to be suitable for outpatient management, counseling and follow-up specialty care are frequently suboptimal.

Objectives: To establish an advanced practice provider (APP)-led rapid follow-up clinic to improve transitions of care for patients with newly diagnosed deep vein thrombosis or low-risk pulmonary embolism and to provide continued specialty care and support, including management of complications and medication access issues.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aimed to evaluate whether anticoagulation with apixaban is more effective than a placebo in preventing death and thromboembolic complications for patients discharged after being hospitalized with COVID-19.
  • - Conducted across 127 U.S. hospitals from 2021 to 2022, the trial included adults who were hospitalized for more than 48 hours and had no contraindications to anticoagulation.
  • - Results showed no significant difference in the incidence of the main outcome between the apixaban group (2.13%) and the placebo group (2.31%), indicating that extended thromboprophylaxis post-discharge may not provide additional benefits.
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Article Synopsis
  • Excessive mucocutaneous bleeding (MCB) significantly affects the physical and mental health of individuals living with it, and there's a need for more research on various bleeding disorders.
  • The National Hemophilia Foundation and American Thrombosis and Hemostasis Network are developing a research plan by consulting stakeholders to determine priorities and create specific research questions.
  • Expert working groups identified 38 key research questions focused on MCB biology and different bleeding disorders, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and innovative treatments in future studies.
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Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is characterized by arteriovenous malformations and telangiectasia, with primary clinical manifestations of epistaxis and gastrointestinal bleeding and resultant anemia. HHT negatively affects health-related quality of life (HR-QoL); however, existing tools to measure HR-QoL are not HHT specific. Our objective was to develop an HHT-specific HR-QoL (HHT-QoL) instrument and evaluate its performance in a cross-sectional survey of individuals with HHT.

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Immune-mediated thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is characterized by recurring episodes of thrombotic microangiopathy, causing ischemic organ impairment. Black patients are overrepresented in iTTP cohorts in the United States, but racial disparities in iTTP outcome and response to therapy have not been studied. Using the United States Thrombotic Microangiopathies Consortium iTTP Registry, we evaluated the impact of race on mortality and relapse-free survival (RFS) in confirmed iTTP in the United States from 1995 to 2020.

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Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), the second most common inherited bleeding disorder, is associated with the development of malformed blood vessels. Abnormal blood vessels may be small and cutaneous or mucosal (telangiectasia), with frequent complications of bleeding, or large and visceral (arteriovenous malformations [AVMs]), with additional risks that can lead to significant morbidity and even mortality. HHT can present in many different ways and can be difficult to recognize, particularly in younger patients in the absence of a known family history of disease or epistaxis, its most common manifestation.

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Purpose: Thrombocytopenia is common among critically ill patients and heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is often on the differential. Professional guidelines recommend calculating a pre-test probability score before performing HIT testing. The 4Ts score is widely utilized but accuracy has been questioned in critically ill patients.

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Heyde syndrome, the co-occurrence of aortic stenosis and bleeding gastrointestinal (GI) angiodysplasia, is managed with aortic valve replacement. However, severe bleeding and anemia can preclude safe use of the antiplatelet or anticoagulant therapy required for this intervention. We present a case of the novel and successful treatment of severe, refractory bleeding and transfusion dependence with antiangiogenic therapy in a patient with Heyde syndrome.

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Introduction: Management of patients with suspected heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) can lead to significant costs. Reported cost-saving initiatives have focused on minimizing inappropriate testing in low-risk patients and optimizing alternative anticoagulant selection. We sought to further investigate how utilizing various HIT laboratory testing models would impact total cost of testing and alternative anticoagulant use.

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The American Society of Hematology and American College of Chest Physicians heparin-induced thrombocytopenia guidelines recommend calculation of a pretest probability score prior to performing laboratory testing, and the 4Ts score is commonly used. Inter-rater agreement of the 4Ts score has been evaluated, but limited data are available regarding the reliability of the 4Ts score when performed by nonexpert clinicians. The purpose of this study was to Compare 4Ts scores calculated by medical teams to an expert.

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Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is a rare paraneoplastic syndrome of solid tumor malignancies. In previously described cases of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) associated with secondary ITP, treatment has consisted of nephrectomy, splenectomy, and corticosteroids. Here, we describe a case of metastatic RCC presenting with a right ventricular mass and subsequent development of secondary ITP.

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Acquired hemophilia A (AHA) is a rare bleeding disorder in which acquired autoantibodies to endogenous factor VIII (FVIII) decrease FVIII activity and lead to a bleeding phenotype. A substantial majority of individuals who develop AHA present with severe bleeding. Effective treatment requires both immunosuppressive therapy and prompt hemostatic treatment.

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Article Synopsis
  • Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is a serious condition caused by heparin that requires careful management, including stopping heparin use and finding alternative treatments.
  • A quality improvement initiative led to the creation of a multidisciplinary workflow to better manage HIT after identifying gaps through medication error reports and reviews.
  • Implementation of this new workflow significantly decreased the number of patients receiving heparin while testing for HIT and improved documentation of heparin allergies among healthcare providers.
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Description: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is an autosomal dominant disease with an estimated prevalence of 1 in 5000 that is characterized by the presence of vascular malformations (VMs). These result in chronic bleeding, acute hemorrhage, and complications from shunting through VMs. The goal of the Second International HHT Guidelines process was to develop evidence-based consensus guidelines for the management and prevention of HHT-related symptoms and complications.

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Purpose Of Review: In this review, we discuss current clinical guidelines and potential underlying mechanisms regarding platelet transfusion therapy in patients at risk of bleeding, comparing management of patients with thrombocytopenia versus those with qualitative platelet disorders.

Recent Findings: Platelet transfusion therapy is highly effective in managing bleeding in patients with hypoproliferative thrombocytopenia. Clinical trials have demonstrated that platelet transfusion can be used at a lower trigger threshold and reduced platelet doses, and may be used therapeutically rather than prophylactically in some situations, although additional data are needed.

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Background: Despite rapid and intensive treatments with therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) and immunosuppression, immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) patients are at risk of disease exacerbation, i.e., early recurrence of TTP within 30 days of achieving treatment response.

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