Modified DALI LDL-apheresis using trisodium citrate anticoagulation plus bicarbonate or lactate-buffered hemofiltration substitution fluids as primers.

Background: DALI (direct adsorption of lipids) is the first LDL-apheresis technique able to adsorb low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and lipoproteina) directly from whole blood. In the standard procedure, acid citrate dextrose (ACD-A) is used as anticoagulation and the adsorber is rinsed with a specially manufactured priming solution (PS). Using neutral trisodium citrate (TSC) instead of ACD-A might improve the acid-base homeostasis during DALI apheresis; moreover, applying wholesale hemofiltration solutions instead of the special PS might avoid the use of two separate solutions for both priming before and reinfusion after the treatment, thus simplifiying the procedure.

Aim: The present study was performed to test the effect of neutral (TSC) anticoagulation and of two different commercially available hemofiltration (HF) priming solutions on the efficacy and biocompatibility of DALI apheresis.

Materials And Methods: Five hypercholesterolemic chronic DALI patients were treated prospectively, on a weekly or biweekly basis, 3 times each by standard DALI-apheresis (A). by DALI using 4% TSC and bicarbonate-buffered HF BIC35-210 priming (B). as well as by DALI using 4% TSC and lactate-buffered HF 23 priming (C). After the sessions, the extracorporeal circuit (ECC) was rinsed with saline in study arm A and with the corresponding HF solutions in study arms B and C, respectively.

Results: Acute LDL-cholesterol reductions in the study arms A/B/C averaged 64/64/63%, for Lp(a) 62/64/62%, respectively (n=15). Clinically, all sessions were essentially uneventful and no clots were observed in the ECC. No major differences were found between the 3 study arms with respect to biocompatibility (elastase, C3a, thrombin-antithrombin, beta-thromboglobulin, bradykinin).

Conclusion: DALI apheresis using TSC anticoagulation and HF solutions for both priming and reinfusion proved to be as safe and effective as the standard DALI apheresis. These modifications, however, further simplify the procedure.