What is cold agglutinin syndrome

Because cold agglutinin syndrome is not common in our lives, many friends do not know what kind of disease it is. Some people even have symptoms of cold agglutinin syndrome but are still unaware of it, which is very dangerous. In order to let everyone have sufficient understanding of cold agglutinin syndrome and know what disease they have when the disease occurs, this article will introduce to you what cold agglutinin syndrome is.

Cold agglutinin syndrome is a group of diseases characterized by chronic hemolytic anemia and microcirculatory embolism due to autoreactive red blood cell agglutination and cold-induced factors. Cold agglutinins are mainly IgM antibodies. This cold antibody can act on its own red blood cell antigens at temperatures below 31°C and cause reversible red blood cell agglutination. When the skin temperature is low, the agglutinated red blood cells block the microcirculation and cause cyanosis, which may be accompanied by mild hemolysis.

Diagnostic criteria and basis

1. Cyanosis of the ears, nose tip, hands and feet may occur in cold environments and can be reversed by warming.

2. When drawing blood from the vein, red blood cells will coagulate.

3. The cold agglutinin test is positive, and the titer can be as high as 1:1,000 or even 1:16,000. 4. Coombs test was positive, almost all of them were C3 type.

Clinical manifestations

There is anemia and jaundice, and the clinical progress is very slow. Most patients experience cyanosis of the ears, nose tip, fingers and toes in a cold environment, which disappears after warming. Hemoglobinuria may occur in acute massive hemolysis, and the hemolysis process is usually self-limited. Since secondary cases are more common, there should be accompanying clinical symptoms and signs of the primary disease.

Clinical diagnosis

It is more common in women and the elderly, and symptoms often occur in cold environments. Symptoms of anemia of varying severity include jaundice, cyanosis of the ears, nose tip, fingers, and toes. The spleen may be slightly enlarged. This disease is more often secondary, such as mycoplasma pneumonia, infectious mononucleosis, etc. These patients often have cold agglutinins, but hemolysis is rare, and hemolysis is usually self-limited. Therefore, attention should be paid to the diagnosis and treatment of the primary disease. It may also occasionally be caused by lymphoreticular tumors.

I believe you should now know what cold agglutinin syndrome is. In fact, the best clinical solution to this disease is heating. Only when the patient's body temperature reaches the standard body temperature, the symptoms of cold agglutinin syndrome will gradually disappear. However, for the sake of our health, it is best to prevent the disease in daily life and avoid being infected with pathogens, so as to prevent the occurrence of cold agglutinin syndrome.