Does Plasma Exchange Cause Rebound Effects?

Plasma exchange, as the name suggests, is the replacement of the blood plasma throughout the body. It can remove harmful substances from the plasma and effectively alleviate or treat diseases. However, plasma exchange may have rebound situations and may cause side effects such as allergic reactions, infections, and bleeding tendencies, which require cautious handling.

Plasma exchange refers to the process of withdrawing the patient's whole blood out of the body for circulation. The blood is then separated into plasma and cellular components using a machine. After that, an equivalent plasma substitute is used to replace the separated plasma, and the mixture is then returned to the patient's body. This process can achieve the purpose of removing pathogenic substances from the original plasma and relieving or reducing the patient's symptoms. In severe cases, plasma exchange may have rebound situations, but if the condition is controlled, rebound is generally not expected.

Firstly, allergic reactions may occur. During plasma exchange, the plasma substitutes used are generally made from fresh frozen plasma, so some people may develop allergies to these frozen plasma products. The solution is to perform plasma and blood type matching before treatment. If an allergic reaction occurs, treatment should be stopped immediately, and anti-allergic medication should be administered. In severe cases, epinephrine injection and active anti-shock treatment may be required.

Secondly, hypovolemic hypotension may occur. During plasma exchange, the patient's whole blood is withdrawn from the body, separated by a machine, and then mixed. When the substitute is returned to the body, hypovolemia and hypoproteinemia may occur. The treatment for this is to slow down the speed of withdrawing the whole blood and supplement blood volume accordingly.

Thirdly, hemolysis can occur, which is a severe reaction usually caused by mismatched blood types. Therefore, special attention should be paid to blood type selection. In addition to the three common side effects mentioned above, there are other clinical side effects such as infections. In such cases, antibiotics and immunosuppressive agents should be used for treatment. There may also be a tendency for bleeding, which requires supplementation with an appropriate amount of fresh plasma. It is hoped that everyone understands these points.