Assessment of iron profile in dialysis patients receiving erythropoietin in bowen university teaching hospital, Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD). Also referred to as chronic kidney failure, is the existence of renal impairment or an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) that is less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m², sustained for three months. At this time, CKD prevalence has increasingly become a global public health concern leading to failure of kidney, cardiovascular disease, and early mortality. The earliest complication observed among CKD patients is anemia, which is largely a result of relatively insufficient erythropoietin (EPO) production that results from compromised renal function. The utilization of iron indices markers is essential for Evaluating iron status is essential in managing both iron deficiency and anemia in individuals with CKD Objective: This study assessed the iron profile among renal dialysis patients attending Bowen University Teaching Hospital (BUTH) Ogbomoso, Nigeria. 

Materials and methods: A prospective analytical case-control study and a hospital-based study conducted from March 2024 to October 2024 in BUTH Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria in this study, 60 older CKD patients in various stages on dialysis attending the nephrology dialysis center of Bowen University Teaching Hospitals in Ogbomoso Oyo state, Nigeria were enrolled into the study. Blood samples were collected from each participant into plain bottles, samples were used for iron indices, the Colorimetry method was used for serum total iron, transferrin, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and ELISA technique was used for ferritin, while Transferrin saturation (Tsat) was calculated.

Results: Dialysis patients on rHuEPO had significantly higher serum ferritin, Transferrin, TIBC, Tsat, and Total iron when compared with non-rHuEPO (p<0.05), with mean±SD of 259.00±17.76 ng/ml, 219.57±15.74mg/dl, 300.82±21.96µmol/l, 37.00±5.30%, and 108.80±13.8 respectively. non-rHuEPO subjects had significantly low serum ferritin, Transferrin, TIBC, Tsat, and Total iron when compared with rHuEPO (p<0.05), with mean±SD of 207.63±25.68 ng/ml, 197.70±13.85mg/dl, 278.75±19.53µmol/l, 23.47±2.30%, and 64.80±5.45µmol/l respectively. Total iron correlated positively with % TSAT while Transferrin and Ferritin correlated positively with TIBC (p<0.05). 

Conclusions: The study revealed a significantly increased serum level of Total iron, transferrin saturation, TIBC, and Ferritin in subjects treated with rHuEPO compared to non-RHuEPO patients.