Abstract
Intravenous reinfusion of autogenous ascitic fluid was primarily applied for intractable ascites in the cirrhotic patient. Recently, this procedure was modified using a technique of cell removal and fluid concentration and applied for intractable ascites in the terminal cancer patient.
In the present study, the effect of the reinfusion of cell-free and concentrated autogenous ascitic fluid for in-tractable ascites in the terminal cancer patient was evaluated.
Fourteen cases of terminal cancer with intractable ascites were treated with 21 reinfusions.
The reinfusion was effective in 85.7% of the cases decreasing the complaints caused by ascitic retension. It caused neither hypoprotenemia nor imbalance of serum electrolytes. In addition, the repeated reinfusion led to a restraint of the re-retension of ascitic fluid. Although pyrexia occurred in 71.4% of the reinfusions, in most of the cases, this was subsided with the administration of the usual antipyretics.
These results indicate that the reinfusion of cell-free and concentrated autogenous ascitic fluid is useful for the control of intractable ascites in the terminal cancer patient.
