Anemia

Ferriprox for treatment of sickle cell anemia

FERRIPROX® (deferiprone) is an oral medication designed to chelate, or remove,  iron overload from transfusions due to thalassemia syndromes when other chelation therapy, most commonly Exjade,  does not work. The studies for approval were done for teh situation when teh initial chaltion did not work (second line) because Ferroprox may be inferior to Exjade in first line. This is not an innocuous drug; the most serious side effect seen in about

Read more
Ferriprox for sickle cell anemia

FERRIPROX® (deferiprone) is an iron chelator indicated for the treatment of patients with  iron overload form transfusions due to thalassemia syndromes when current chelation therapy, most commonly Exjade,  is inadequate. The approval in second line is reasonable both because the studies for approval were done in second line and because Ferroprox may be inferior to Exjade in first line (Cemak et al). This is not an innocuous drug; the most serious

Read more
Cyclosporine for Aplastic Anemia

Aplastic anemia in younger patients is generally an  immune disorders, in which the immune system attack newly forming red cells and kills them. For this reason, it is often treated with immunosuppression. The risks of supressing the immune system is greater in older people, and for this reason, the suppression of the immune system is more often used in younger patients. Older individuals and those who failed immune suppressing drugs, should go

Read more
Testing for Alpha-thalassemia

The human alpha gene is found on the short arm of chromosome 16 and there are two hemoglobin alpha chain genes, HBA1 and HBA2. Almost all alpha thalassemias result from a loss of one or more of the alpha genes; the more genes dropped, the more severe is the disease.  Unlike Beta-thalssemia, which is found around the Mediterranean, alpha-thalassemias is more geographically widespread and can be found in the descendents of people from Africa and Asia,

Read more
Conditioning for allogeneic transplantation in Aplastic Anemia

Stem cell Transplantation is the only curative therapy long term for Aplastic Anemia(AA). Before stem cells can be transfused, the marrow needs to be conditioned. In younger patients with Aplastic Anemia, the standard conditioning proposed by the Working Party(WPSAA) on AA is cyclophosphamide 50 mg/kg 32 × 4 + ATG. This regimen does not completely destroy the patient’s bone marrow and it is highly immunosuppressive in order prevent graft rejection

Read more
Nutritional Deficiencies in Scleroderma and Related Disorders

Nutritional deficiencies in scleroderma and related disorders often include folate and Vit. B12, and more recently reported, Vit. D and E, due to bacterial overgrowth in the gut. Metanx is sometimes prescribed for these conditions. Metanx is a food which is formulated to be consumed or administered by mouth under the supervision of a physician and which is intended for the specific dietary management of a disease or condition for which distinctive

Read more
Transfusing Young Anemic Women: A Careful Assessment is Required

Anemia is common in young women and is usually due to iron deficiency. If anemia has a slower, subacute onset, younger patients without significant medical problems can tolerate low hemoglobin levels. Often times, however, in addition to being anemic for some time, young women may have recently bled. In this situation there is less time for the body to become used to the low red cell levels and a moderate anemia may cause symptoms, such as, shortness

Read more