Hopital Saint-Louis
1, avenue Claude Vellefaux
75475 Paris Cedex 10
France
Phone: 33 (1) 42 49 92 10
Telefax: 33 (1) 42 40 93 14
E-mail: ets-bussel@chu-stlouis.fr
The World Apheresis Association is an umbrella organization for national and international professional societies devoted to the scientific, medical, practical, technical, administrative, or educational aspects of apheresis. The purposes of the Association are to:
Provide an organization through which all professional Societies dedicated to research and/or clinical practice in apheresis can communicate and collaborate
Foster global collaboration in scientific investigation, research, clinical applications, education, and exchange of information relating to apheresis and allied fields in clinical and laboratory medicine
Facilitate the availability of safe and effective apheresis techniques for the collection of donor cells and plasma as well as the removal or modification of blood constituents in disease
Encourage and advance high standards of administrative and technical performance in the field of apheresis
In pursuit of the above goals the WAA:
Hosts a biennial international Congress devoted to all aspects of apheresis
Contributes to the exchange of scientific information through its official journal, Transfusion Science and Apheresis,Publishes a newsletter outlining important developments in apheresis and in member Societies
Is working to establish a worldwide registry of patients treated by therapeutic apheresis
Promotes the exchange of information between apheresis physicians and practitioners through it website forum.
European Society for Haemapheresis
Department of Vascular and Renal Diseases, Dialysis Unit
S Förstadsgatan 101
S - 205 02 Malmö. Sweden
Fax: +46 240-337052
Haemapheresis is concerned with the separation of blood. It is not only able to separate cells from the blood fluid (plasma) and vice versa plasma from the cells (primary separation), but also (secondary separation, differential separation) cellular blood components and plasma constituents. Thus it can be usefully applied in many areas of medicine such as internal medicine (mainly haematology, oncology, nephrology) transfusion medicine, neurology, dermatology, ophthalmology, otology etc.
Techniques applied are centrifugation and filtration.
Centrifugation is used for cytapheresis and plasmaseparation where filtration is limited to plasmaseparation.
Haemapheresis is indicated for
• Cytapheresis treatments
• Platelet and granulocyte donations
• Stem cell donations and leucozyte differential preparation
• Plasma exchange therapies
• Plasma treatments using plasma differential separation
Haemapheresis offers mainly palliative therapies, ranging from an improvement of the quality of life to live saving measures. Haemapheresis is performed under the supervision of the regional health authorities like any other medical practice, clinic or hospital. If haemapheresis techniques are applied in transfusion medicine, additional legal requirements and guidelines of the regional and national boards and transfusion societies are observed. With the development of the European Union, national responsibilities will be replaced from rules and regulations of the European Community.
