An uncommon cause of alveolar hemorrhage: transfusion-related acute lung injury caused by granulocyte-specific antibody.

Introduction. - Transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) is an infrequent but life-threatening complication of hemotherapy, usually secondary to passive transfer of antibody from the donor's plasma to the recipient. TRALI is a diagnosis of exclusion often masked by underlying factors. Exegesis. - We report a new case of TRALI in a patient with severe multinevritis associated,with Sjogren's syndrome and cryoglobulinemia,,cho had received intravenous immunoglobulins. Conclusion. - This case report underlines the difficulty to establish a diagnosis in both acute respiratory failure and intra-alveolar hemorrhage in patients with auto-immune disorders. This case report also emphasizes the necessity of taking precautions in these immunocompromised patients in whom hemoglobin transfusion is required. (C) 1998, Elsevier, Paris.