Heparin‐Induced Extracorporeal Low‐Density Lipoprotein Precipitation Futura, a New Modification of HELP Apheresis: Technique and First Clinical Results

Heparin extracorporeal low-density lipoprotein precipitation (HELP) Futura is a new development in the standard HELP Secura system that has been in clinical practice for more than 15 years. Based on this experience, a HELP Upgrading system was first evaluated in a clinical trial to confirm the same clinical results as in the standard system. The upgraded procedure worked with industrially prepared sterile dialysis solutions instead of the reverse osmosis device. The conclusion of the study was that the reductions of low-density lipoprotein, lipoprotein (a), and fibrinogen and the correction of the acid-base balance were comparable with the results of the standard system. As a second step, the HELP Futura system was evaluated in a clinical acceptance test and in a field test in the daily routine. After approximately 2,000 treatments on 35 patients, we can conclude that the HELP Futura procedure has reached a mature phase with a high degree of clinical safety and flexibility.