Familial thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura in a Bedouin family.

A 24-year-old Beduin pregnant woman in her 22nd week of gestation was treated successfully by plasmaphereses and steroids as soon as the diagnosis of TTP was confirmed by the clinical and laboratory criteria needed. Her sister died due to complications of TTP in pregnancy five years earlier while her other sister recuperated from TTP during pregnancy. However, fetal loss ensued. Thus, family history in pregnant women presenting with toxemia of pregnancy--like--syndrome may be the first clue to familial TTP.