Sinan Demircioğlu, Abdullah Karakuş, Mahmut Töbü, Senem Altay Dadin, Orhan Ayyildiz, Mehmet Ali Erkurt, Naile Guner, Osman Özcebe, Omur Gokmen Sevindik, Fatih Demirkan, Emine Gültürk, Ismail Sari, Sevgi Kalayoglu Besisik, Mehmet Sönmez, İlhami Kiki, Erdal Kurtoğlu, Anil Tombak, Gülsüm Özet, Turgay Ulas, Demet Kiper Ünal, Nermin Kutlu, Mutlu Arat, Deniz Goren Sahin, Halil Celik, Simten Dagdas, Cengiz Demir, Bahriye Payzin, Sibel Hacioglu, Filiz Vural, Fevzi Altuntaş, Serdal Korkmaz, Zahit Bolaman, Özgür Meletli, Volkan Karakuş, Serkan Ocakci, Murat Albayrak, Ilker Bay, Hava Üsküdar Teke, Irfan Kuku, Ilhami Berber, Tulay Karaagac Akyol, Berna Afacan Öztürk, Mehmet Sinan Dal, Şerife Solmaz Medeni, Gulsum Akgun Cagliyan, Seckin Cagirgan, Gökhan Özgür, Düzgün Özatlı, Mehmet Hilmi Dogu, and Ondokuz Mayıs Üniversitesi
Karakus, Volkan/0000-0001-9178-2850; Demirkan, Fatih/0000-0002-1172-8668; Demircioglu, Sinan/0000-0003-1277-5105; Arat, Mutlu/0000-0003-2039-8557; Cagliyan, Gulsum Akgun/0000-0002-2073-1949; Ozturk, Hacer Berna Afacan/0000-0001-9386-7604; WOS: 000473249400014 PubMed: 31036516 Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) is used to treat more than 60 diseases worldwide and has drawn growing interest. Little is known about the current situation of TPE activity in Turkey, so we developed a survey to obtain information about this timely topic. We collected data on TPE from 28 apheresis units throughout Turkey. We performed a total of 24,912 TPE procedures with 3203 patients over the past decade. Twenty years ago, the majority of procedures were performed for neurological and hematological disorders, and today, most TPE procedures are done for the same reasons. The only historical change has been an increase in TPE procedures in renal conditions. Currently, renal conditions were more frequently an indication for TPE than rheumatic conditions. Fresh frozen plasma was the most frequently used replacement fluid, followed by 5% albumin, used in 57.9% and 34.6% of procedures, respectively. The most frequently used anticoagulants in TPE were ACD-A and heparin/ACD-A, used with 1671 (52.2%) and 1164 (36.4%) patients, respectively. The frequency of adverse events (AEs) was 12.6%. The most common AEs were hypocalcemia-related symptoms, hypotension, and urticaria. We encountered no severe AEs that led to severe morbidity and mortality. Overall, more than two thirds of the patients showed improvement in the underlying disease. Here, we report on a nationwide survey on TPE activity in Turkey. We conclude that there has been a great increase in apheresis science, and the number of TPE procedures conducted in Turkey has increased steadily over time. Finally, we would like to point out that our past experiences and published international guidelines were the most important tools in gaining expertise regarding TPE.