Replacement therapy with virus-inactivated clotting factor concentrates in patients with severe hemophilia in Heidelberg.

Abstract

As early as 1943, Beeson had observed a connection between the transfusion of blood products and the emergence of hepatitis.[1] Jaundice developed in 7 patients 1 to 4 months after the administration of whole blood or plasma. Further reports on the development of hepatitis in hemophilia patients were published in the mid-1970s.[2] [3] [4] Today, it is generally accepted that the hepatitis C virus (HCV) causes most cases of posttransfusion hepatitis in the western world. It is responsible for most of the chronic liver disorders observed in hemophilia patients treated with clotting factor concentrates. The HCV infection can be associated with replacement therapy involving clotting factor concentrates administered in the early 1970s.[2] [5] [6]