Plasma exchange in autoimmune disorders.

Plasma exchange has been explored as an adjunctive form of therapy in the management of a variety of autoimmune diseases including Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Goodpasture's syndrome, Rapidly Progressive Glomerulonephritis, Polyarteritis Nodosa, Wegener's Granulomatosis, and Rheumatoid Arthritis. The rationale for its use is based on the removal of potentially tissue-damaging circulating antibodies or immune complexes. Results have been encouraging but numbers of patients and controlled studies have been few. It is anticipated that future controlled studies will shed critical light on the role of therapeutic plasma exchange in these illnesses.