Objective To investigate the efficiency and safety of autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (ABSCT) in treatment for thromboangiitis obliterans.
Methods Fifty patients (62 affected limbs) with thromboangiitis obliterans were treated by ABSCT. A series of subjective indexes including improvement of pain and cold sensation and objective indexes including intermittent claudication distance, ankle brachial index (ABI), skin temperature, and improvement of foot skin ulcer were evaluated.
Results Due to necrosis in middle and lower part of leg, 4 of 50 patients (4 lower limbs) were taken extremity amputation on 3 weeks after ABSCT, 46 patients kept their legs successfully. On 1 month after ABSCT, the legs pain and cold sensation of 46 patients (58 affected limbs) vanished, and the score of feet pain and cold sensation after ABSCT were better than those before ABSCT (P<0.05). The intermittent claudication distance, skin temperature, and ABI of 46 patients with kepting their legs on 3 months after ABSCT significantly increased as compared with before ABSCT 〔intermittent claudication distance:(80.38±45.53) m versus (330.56±142.31) m;skin temperature:(26.50±0.46) ℃ versus (31.49±0.45) ℃;ABI:0.41±0.02 versus 0.71±0.05〕, the differences were statistically significant(P<0.05). Six months after ABSCT, different degree neonatal lateral vessels were found in 58 affected limbs of 46 patients by lower extremity arteriography. The complications were not found in all the patients by laboratory or CT detection, such as malignant tumors, retinal hyperplasia, aneurysm and so on. After ABSCT, 40 patients were followed up for 9 to 36 months (mean 22.5months), the symptom had improved. Due to leg pain aggravated after 6 months, score of pain feelings was 4 in 6 patients and with toe ulcers, who had ABSCT again. Eighteen months after transplantation, the patients had only debilitation of lower extremity. The pain feeling was improved (score of pain feeling was 1). The toe ulcer was healed and no angiosclerotic myasthenia happened.
Conclusions ABSCT is a simple, safe, and effective method, especially in treatment for patients with severe lower limb ischemia who is no arterial reconstruction is feasible. It could improve the quality of life of patients and might be avoided amputation of lower extremity or foot.
Citation: LI Guojian,YANG Yong,YANG Guokai,WAN Jia,MA Zhenhuan,LU Ping,.. Clinical Application of Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cells Transplantation in Treatment for Thromboangiitis Obliterans. CHINESE JOURNAL OF BASES AND CLINICS IN GENERAL SURGERY, 2012, 19(11): 1187-1190. doi: Copy