Maternal Response to Therapeutic Plasma Exchange in Early Gestation: A Case Series of Thrombotic Microangiopathies and Neurological Disorders.

Background/

Objectives

Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) is an extracorporeal treatment used in thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs) and various autoimmune and neurological disorders. However, data regarding its use during early pregnancy remain limited. This study aimed to evaluate maternal laboratory response and perinatal outcomes in pregnant women who underwent TPE before 26 weeks of gestation.

Methods

This retrospective case series included 10 pregnant women diagnosed before 26 weeks of gestation who underwent TPE between 2010 and 2023. Clinical and laboratory parameters before and after TPE were compared.

Results

Indications for TPE included HELLP syndrome (n = 4), thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (n = 3), presumed atypical haemolytic uremic syndrome (n = 1), neuromyelitis optica (n = 1), and Guillain-Barré syndrome (n = 1). The mean gestational age at diagnosis was 22.1 ± 3.1 weeks, and the mean gestational age at delivery was 27.1 ± 6.9 weeks. Five fetuses (50%) died and five (50%) survived to discharge. In patients with TMAs, TPE was associated with significant decreases in LDH, INR, APTT, ALT, AST, and total bilirubin levels, along with a significant increase in platelet count and ADAMTS13 activity (p < 0.01). No maternal complications occurred in neurological cases, all of which resulted in term deliveries with healthy neonates.

Conclusions

In this uncontrolled case series, TPE was associated with rapid maternal clinical and laboratory improvement in selected pregnant women with TMAs, although a causal effect cannot be established from these data. However, perinatal outcomes were primarily determined by gestational age at delivery: all fetal losses occurred before 26 weeks, whereas all infants survived when delivery occurred after 26 weeks. Larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.