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Open Access 01-12-2019 | Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome | Case report
Reduced membrane attack complex formation in umbilical cord blood during Eculizumab treatment of the mother: a case report
Published in: BMC Nephrology | Issue 1/2019
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Background
Atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS) is a disorder of the microvasculature with hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia and acute kidney injury. Nowadays, aHUS is successfully treated with eculizumab, a humanized, chimeric IgG2/4 kappa antibody, which binds human complement C5 and blocks generation of C5a and membrane-attack-complex.
Case presentation
A 25-year-old woman with end stage renal disease due to relapsing atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome had a relapse of the disease during pregnancy. She was treated with eculizumab. We measured reduced formation of the membrane-attack complex in newborn’s umbilical cord vein blood using the sensitive and specific Palarasah-Nielsen-ELISA.
Conclusions
Eculizumab treatment of the mother with end stage renal disease may cause reduced innate immunity which could render newborns more susceptible to infections.