Transfusion associated graft vs host disease

Question 1

What happens in this?

Answer 1

T cells from the blood donor recognise the recipient’s body cells as foreign and attack the recipient’s body cells, leading to acute and life threatening or chronic disease.

Question 2

How does it present?

Answer 2

characterised by painful rashes, jaundice, liver damage, watery or bloody diarrhoea (in acute GvHD) and scleroderma, scleritis, dysphagia, oral ulcers and restrictive lung disease

Question 3

What can lab results show?

Answer 3

Pancytopenia

Question 4

When does it occur?

Answer 4

Delayed reaction that occurs 2-6 weeks after transfusion

Question 5

How can a diagnosis be made?

Answer 5

Biopsy of skin or bone marrow.

Biopsy of skin will show abundant necrotic keratinocytes; bone marrow shows marked hypocellularity with macrophage infiltration

Question 6

How is this prevented?

Answer 6

By giving irradiated products which destroys T cells