Biocompatible devices, systems, and methods for reducing levels of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators in the blood

Abstract

Devices, systems, and methods reduce levels of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators in blood by selective adsorption. The devices, systems, and methods are useful in situations where abnormal levels of or unregulated or excessive interaction among pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators occur, or during events that do induce or have the potential for inducing abnormal production of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators. The devices, systems, and methods serve to prevent, control, reduce, or alleviate the severity of the inflammatory response and disease states that are associated with abnormal levels of or unregulated or excessive interaction among pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a divisional of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 036,758, which is a continuation-in-part U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 832,159, filed Apr. 10, 2001, now abandoned, and entitled “System for Treating Patient with Bacterial Infections,” which is incorporated herein by reference. This application is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 829,252, filed Apr. 10, 2001, now abandoned, and entitled “Method of Treating Patient with Bacterial Infections,” which is also incorporated herein by reference. This application claims, under 35 U.S.C. § 120, the benefit of the filing date of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 294,224, filed Apr. 19, 1999, (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,416,487) and entitled “Method for Removing Beta-2 Microglobulin from Blood,” which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08 / 902,727, filed Jul. 30, 1997 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,904,663).FIELD OF THE IN...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0029] Another aspect of the invention provides devices, systems, and methods for removing cytokines or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators from the blood, which are of use in other events that do induce or have the potential for inducing production of such stimulators or mediators due to extracorporeal blood processing, handling, or storage. These events can lead to an incidental or “obligatory” activation of the immune system due to subjecting the blood to extracorporeal treatment, pumping, or storage, e.g., for centrifugal or membrane blood separation; or for hemodialysis or hemofiltration; or for oxygenation. This obligatory activation of the immune system can activate production of cytokines or or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators in the blood as it undergoes extracorporeal treatment, handling, or storage. The increased presence of cytokines or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators in the treated, handled, or stored blood or blood product can, upon re-infusion, generate an incidental inflammatory response in the recipient's system, or at least can contribute to an incidental abnormal level of cytokines or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators in the recipient. In such events, the devices, systems and methods serve to reduce the population of cytokines or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators by removing such stimulators or mediators from the treated, handled, or stored blood or blood product. This aspect of the invention serves to prevent incidental inflammatory response conditions or disease states as a result of otherwise beneficial blood treatment, handling or storage, by lessening the population of cytokines or other species of pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators present in the re-infused blood or blood product.

[0030] The devices, systems, and methods that embody features of the invention also make it possible to restore a normal balance between pro-inflammatory stimulators or mediators and anti-inflammatory stimulators or mediators. For example, during a cytokine cascade, pro-inflammatory cytokines are typically generated in larger numbers in proportion to anti-inflammatory cyt...

Problems solved by technology

Immune effector cells, especially neutrophils, possess potent cytotoxic capacity and when unchecked, this response can cause significant tissue injury.

Immune effector cells become dysfunctional and are no longer capable of normal immune surveillance.

Such a condition results in increased susceptibility to recurrent infection, prolonged inflammation and continued tissue injury.

From thi...

Images