What does haemoperfusion mean?

Haemoperfusion is a combination of the words haemo and perfusion and means "blood flow". In this treatment, the blood is passed through a special filter as it occurs in the body (i.e. as whole blood). This filter can effectively filter out harmful substances according to their molecular size. In addition, the blood is heated and enriched with oxygen by the so-called oxygenator.

This special filter has a surface area of about 65,000 m². It filters molecules in a defined size range out of the blood, which can be microthrombi (blood clots) and proteins (e.g. spike proteins, agonistic autoantibodies). By means of heating (hyperthermia) and oxygenation (oxygenation) of the blood, the blood flow (perfusion) of the organs of the body is additionally promoted and thus their functionality is increased.

For the therapy, our experienced medical team temporarily creates an access via the large vein in the patient's groin, so that the blood can be taken out of the body and, after filtering, oxygenation and slight warming, directly returned to the body. The treatment takes 4 hours and is performed on an outpatient basis at the Blood Health Centre.

What does hyperthermia mean?

Hyperthermia is a therapy method with which fever can be simulated by a controlled increase in body temperature. Fever is the oldest body's own defence system known to us, with which the metabolism of harmful pathogens (e.g. viruses) as well as the structural composition of their proteins can be disturbed.

In addition, the increased body temperature stimulates the formation of so-called heat shock proteins and thus the activation of the body's own macrophages (scavenger cells).

In the usual hyperthermia procedures (e.g. heat bed), the entire body is heated to up to 42°C by external heat radiation, which not only takes a very long time (8 hours on average), but is also extremely stressful for the body and involves numerous risks (e.g. skin burns, massive circulatory problems). Our hyperthermia method works with temperatures of up to 43°C and is comparatively gentle, among other things due to the significantly shorter treatment time of only 4 hours.

Who can benefit from the therapy?

The field of application of extracorporeal hyperthermia perfusion is manifold.
The procedure is to be evaluated as an alternative therapy.

The procedure can be considered for the following diseases and syndromes:

• Post-Covid syndrome
• Post-VAC syndrome
• Chronic infection, Lyme disease
• Chronic inflammatory diseases of the musculoskeletal system (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis, skin (e.g. neurodermatitis, psoriasis) or intestine (e.g. Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis)
• Supportive in the context of oncological treatment
• Depression
• Heavy metal pollution, e.g. lead poisoning