Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation, Vol 14, Issue 90002 37-45, Copyright © 1999 by Oxford University Press
C van Ypesele de Strihou
In patients with cardiovascular disease, partial correction of anaemia with
epoetin improves quality of life and exercise capacity, and reduces left
ventricular hypertrophy. The currently recommended haemoglobin in these
patients is 11-12 g/dl. The optimal haemoglobin in patients with diabetes
mellitus does not differ from that in non-diabetic patients; however,
haemoglobin should be increased slowly. There is no difference in the
recommended haemoglobin between children and adults. However, epoetin
sensitivity is lower in children, and therefore they typically need the
same dose of epoetin as adults. Epoetin treatment may delay the progression
of chronic renal failure (CRF) in paediatric patients. Elderly patients
obtain similar benefits from epoetin as younger adults; moreover, there are
no differences in the doses of epoetin required or the optimal haemoglobin.
There are very few data available on the effects of epoetin in patients
with CRF and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. At present, a
haemoglobin of 11 g/dl seems appropriate. In sickle-cell anaemia patients
with CRF, a high haemoglobin could precipitate painful crises;
consequently, the recommended haemoglobin is the pre-CRF concentration of
6-9 g/dl. There is no convincing evidence of any effect of previous epoetin
treatment on the long-term outcome of renal transplantation. In patients
with a failing or failed transplant, the required dose of epoetin may be
higher than in pre-transplantation patients. In such cases, transplant
nephrectomy might be considered. Keywords: anaemia;
diabetes; elderly patients; epoetin; ischaemic heart disease; renal
transplantation
ORIGINAL ARTICLES
Chairman's workshop report. Should anaemia in subtypes of CRF patients by managed differently?
Cliniques Universitaires St. Luc, Avenue Hippocrate 10, 1200 Bruxelles, Belgium
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