Use of Plasmapheresis in Managing the Diagnostic Dilemma of Symptomatic Hypertriglyceridemia

We present a case study of a 29-year-old male who presented with abdominal pain typical for pancreatitis. Detailed history and investigations revealed that the cause of abdominal pain was secondary to the raised triglyceride levels. It was difficult to distinguish whether he had hypertriglyceridemia...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Nigel Gordon Maher, Hariharan Ramaswamykanive
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2012-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Gastrointestinal Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/501373
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Summary:We present a case study of a 29-year-old male who presented with abdominal pain typical for pancreatitis. Detailed history and investigations revealed that the cause of abdominal pain was secondary to the raised triglyceride levels. It was difficult to distinguish whether he had hypertriglyceridemia-induced abdominal pain or acute pancreatitis, given that he had only a mildly raised lipase and a normal contrast computed tomography scan of the pancreas. The abdominal pain resolved with the fall in the triglyceride levels following plasmapheresis. Plasmapheresis is an underevaluated modality of the treatment of hypertriglyceridemia due to its cost and availability.
ISSN:2090-6528
2090-6536