HUS

Treatment may involve:

• Dialysis
• Medications such as corticosteroids
• Transfusions of packed red blood cells and platelets

Some people may have the liquid portion of their blood (plasma) removed and replaced with fresh (donated) plasma, or the plasma is filtered to remove antibodies from the blood.

This is a serious illness in both children and adults, and it can cause death. With proper treatment, more than half of patients will recover. The outcome is better in children than adults.

• Blood clotting problems
• Hemolytic anemia
• Kidney failure
• Nervous system problems
• Too few platelets (thrombocytopenia)
• Uremia

Call your health care provider if you develop symptoms of HUS. Emergency symptoms include:

• Blood in the stool
• No urination
• Reduced alertness (consciousness)

Call your health care provider if you have had an episode of HUS and your urine output decreases, or you develop other new symptoms.

Images

Male urinary system

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Hemolytic Symptoms

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Hemolytic Prevention

Review Date: 03/28/2010
Reviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; and James R. Mason, MD, Oncologist, Director, Blood and Marrow Transplantation Program and Stem Cell Processing Lab, Scripps Clinic, Torrey Pines, California. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)