TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH HEMOPHILIA-A AND INHIBITORS TO FACTOR FVIII WITH CIMETIDINE

In this study, cimetidine was used to treat patients with hemophilia A and inhibitors td factor VIII who presented with acute hemorrhages (G roup A) and those without hemorrhages (Group B), The dose of cimetidin e was 15 mg/kg/day. Group A consisted of five patients with inhibitors between 156 and >10,000 Bethesda Units (BU), all with serious hemorrh agic problems, The control of hemorrhaging was effective in 100% of th ese patients, although inhibitor levels remained high (25-380 BU). Gro up B consisted of seven patients who did not have hemorrhages, whose i nhibitor levels were 41-358 BU, Five of these patients no longer had a namnestic responses to Factor VIII after several months of treatment w ith cimetidine, No difference in the response to cimetidine was seen b etween HIV positive and HIV negative patients, The results suggest tha t cimetidine is useful to suppress inhibitors to Factor VIII in patien ts with hemophilia A.