Erythropoietin therapy in predialysis patients

Abstract

Anemia is recognized as a very important non-traditional risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with uremia. Despite many advantages of erythropoietin therapy, the number of patients treated with this drug is modest, particularly during the pre-end stage renal disease. Patients with chronic renal failure are at risk to develop coronary artery disease, left ventricular hypertrophy and chronic heart failure when hemoglobin concentration falls below 10 g/dl and creatinine clearance under 60 ml/min. Early erythropoietin treatment prevents not only cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, but also progression of renal failure towards end-stage renal disease. Anti-oxidant, anti-hypoxic and anti-apoptotic effects of erythropoietin prevent tubular lesions and interstitial fibrosis. There still remains a confusion regarding the optimum target hemoglobin concentration in the pre-dialysis phase. Guidelines in Europe and US are probably not appropriate for all patients and it is important that renal anemia patients are considered as individuals. It may be appropriate to normalize hemoglobin concentration in young patients who have active lifestyles and no severe co-morbidity. In contrast, partial correction is more appropriate for the elderly with significant co-morbidities. Special attention should be paid to patients with diabetes, where anemia starts earlier and is more profound than in other renal patients. There is no risk of early anemia treatment using erythropoietin and this regime does not increase the total cost of treatment. Early referral to a nephrologist is the key how to define underlying renal disease, slow down the progression of renal failure, prevent co-morbid conditions and to prepare patients for end-stage renal disease treatment.