Thrombotic events (TE), or the blockage of blood flow due to blood clots, are relatively common among adults with cold agglutinin disease (CAD) and other forms of autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA), according to a study in France. Researchers also found that experiencing five or more hemolytic attacks marked by…
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A friend of mine asked me, “You’re always staying home. Have you always been a homebody?” I got mad. This comment was many years ago, and it still irritates. But I didn’t express my irritation to my friend. They couldn’t have known that their words were insulting to me; plus,…
Up to about 1 person in 100,000 in the U.S. is estimated to be diagnosed with primary cold agglutinin disease (CAD) each year and up to 3 in 10,000 people are living with the disease, a study that analyzed 2016-2023 data from national claim databases suggests. Primary CAD…
The nurse had taken all of my vitals, and the doctors had come in for a chat. My checkup was almost over: yay! But the part I hate most — the blood draw — was next. I hoped the nurse was in a good mood, as I’m convinced it makes…
A 76-year-old woman with cold agglutinin disease (CAD) underwent an emergency upper endoscopy, a procedure to look at the upper gastrointestinal tract, without any disease-related complications, thanks to warming strategies that prevented her body temperature from getting too low, a study shows. Such strategies included raising the temperature of…
Cold agglutinin disease (CAD) is a rare disorder in which the immune system mistakenly attacks red blood cells, resulting in anemia.
CAD is characterized by autoantibodies, called cold agglutinins, binding to and activating the destruction of red blood cells when exposed to cold temperatures.
Symptoms of CAD include fatigue, Raynaud’s syndrome, joint pain, jaundice or skin discoloration, and heart problems. These symptoms can worsen with more cold exposure.
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