Emerging low-density lipoprotein (LDL) therapies: Management of severely elevated LDL cholesterol--the role of LDL-apheresis

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-apheresis is a Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) or severe heterozygous FH. Based on electrochemical principles, it selectively removes apolipoprotein B-containing lipoproteins through extracorporeal precipitation with either heparin (Heparin-induced Extracorporeal LDL Precipitation, ie, HELP) or dextran sulfate (Liposorber). LDL-apheresis can lead to an acute decrease in LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) of 70%-80%, but there is a rapid rebound to baseline levels within approximately 2 weeks. LDL-apheresis is typically performed once-a-week in patients with homozygous FH and every other week in those with heterozygous FH to produce time-average LDL-C reductions of ≈ 40%. Side effects associated with LDL-apheresis include hypotension (later found to be due to concomitant use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors), nausea/vomiting, flushing, angina, and fainting. Posttreatment bleeding can occur secondary to heparin used during the procedure. Challenges associated with LDL-apheresis include vascular access often requiring an arteriovenous fistula (fistulas may clot and require revision over time), the time associated with each treatment session (2-4 hours), the frequency of treatment, and the scarcity of medical centers which perform LDL-apheresis. Given the nature of LDL-apheresis, randomized placebo controlled trials are nearly impossible, and virtually all studies of clinical benefit have been non-randomized investigations of small numbers of subjects. Nonetheless, results from those studies support the benefits of LDL-C reduction for reducing coronary atherosclerosis and cardiovascular events.