Leukocyte apheresis

Leukocyte apheresis is a medical device therapy (selective granulocyte/monocyte adsorptive {GMA} apheresis; GMDN^[1] code: 47306) for the treatment of inflammation of the colon. It works by removing from the blood a group of white blood cells called activated leukocytes^[2] that play a key role in the inflammatory stages of ulcerative colitis (UC).^[3] Selectively reducing these cells in the blood helps to reduce inflammation in the colon.^[4] Leukocyte apheresis can help UC patients with chronic, grumbling disease who are either unsuitable for, intolerant of, or failing on medicines described above.^[5]