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October 31st, 2003 Octaplas® - now available in Finland In September 2003, Finland became the latest in an ever growing list of countries, to introduce Octaplas® - Octapharma´s unique solvent detergent treated plasma as an alternative to non-inactivated fresh frozen plasma (FFP) for transfusion. To mark this event, Octapharma held an Educational Symposium on Solvent Detergent treated FFP in Helsinki, Finland on October 1st.
The symposium was designed to address key questions regarding the use of solvent-detergent treated FFP. Stacey Nicholls, International Business Manager, at Octapharma outlined the development of Octaplas®. Professor Bjarte Solheim from Rikshospitalet Oslo, Norway spoke of the clinical experience in Norway and of the success of the 12 year self-sufficiency fractionation project between the Norwegian Red Cross and Octapharma AG. Dr Jonathan Wallis from Newcastle upon Tyne in the UK highlighted the problem of TRALI (Transfusion Related Acute Lung Injury) - a life-threatening condition similar to ARDS (Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome) that may occur after transfusion of single donor FFP. Frequently under-diagnosed, Dr Wallis urged Finnish clinicians to be aware of this potential complication. He provided a clear and thorough insight into the condition and its causes. As TRALI is frequently associated with HLA class II antibodies, he suggested that the problem could be avoided either by the use of a pooled solvent detergent plasma such as Octaplas®, or by excluding multiparous women from donation of plasma containing components. Finally, Dr Georg Riedler from Lucerne in Switzerland discussed the cost-effectiveness of SD Plasma outlining the findings from his recent paper in Vox Sanguinis. 
Octapharma would like thank all the speakers for their input and excellent presentations and the audience for their active participation in the open forum. Collectively this contributed to the overall success of the meeting.For more information about Octaplas please click here. To contact Octapharma Finland please contact Tapani Moilanen tapani.moilanen@octapharma.se © Octapharma AG, 2003 |
