Therapeutic Apheresis

Adsorbers remove pathogenic substances from the blood


The treatment of blood outside the body by means of adsorbers is a new and innovative therapy concept based on the selective removal of undesirable and pathogenic substances from the blood. It is used for those patients in particular who have diseases which cannot be treated successfully by conventional methods.

The following diseases can be treated with the new technology:
  • hypercholesterolaemia, a hereditary lipometabolic disorder
  • auto-immune diseases such as lupus erythematosus as well as
  • dilatative cardiomyopathy
  • certain forms of nephritis, disorders of blood coagulation
  • organ rejection
The process is very effective and extremely well tolerated as the patients are not given any drugs. For instance, the DALI system enables LDL cholesterol to be removed from whole blood for the first time. As a result of the treatment, the development of coronary heart disease can be influenced in a positive way.

Treatment of blood outside the body


In all adsorber treatments, the blood flows through a tube from a vein in the arm of the patient into the adsorber. The various adsorbers contain different materials which, like a sponge, selectively extract the undesirable and pathogenic substances from the blood. The cleansed blood is then returned to the patient via the vein in the other arm. A special machine pumps the blood through the adsorber and monitors the blood circulation outside the body.

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Updated: July 17, 2008
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