Leukapheresis

Leukapheresis is a method of removing white blood cells from the blood by centrifugation. It is used in medicine to treat various diseases associated with an increase in the number of white blood cells in the blood, such as leukemia, lymphoma and other diseases of the hematopoietic system.

Leukapheresis is carried out using a special device – leukapheresis. The device consists of two chambers: one for blood and one for white blood cells. The patient's blood is placed in the first chamber, where it is separated into two parts: red blood cells and white blood cells. The white blood cells are then removed from the blood using a centrifuge, and the red blood cells are returned back to the blood.

After the white blood cells are removed, the patient receives purified blood that contains only red blood cells. This allows you to reduce the number of leukocytes in the blood and improve its quality.

In addition, leukapheresis can be used to treat some autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. In this case, white blood cells are removed to reduce immune system activity and reduce inflammation.

However, despite its effectiveness, leukapheresis has a number of limitations and contraindications. For example, it cannot be used if you have thrombocytopenia (low platelet count in the blood) or if you have severe infections.

Thus, leukapheresis is an important method for the treatment of diseases of the hematopoietic system and autoimmune diseases. However, its use should only be carried out under the supervision of a physician and taking into account all possible contraindications and restrictions.