Erythropoietin impact on serum ferritin levels in dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease patients receiving iron therapy.

Objective: To assess the effect of Erythropoietin on serum ferritin levels in dialysis-dependent Chronic Kidney Disease patients receiving iron therapy. Study Design: Observational study. Setting: Dialysis Unit of the Nephrology Department, Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. Period: September 2023 to March 2024. Methods: The study included adults aged 18 years and older who were diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD) stages 3 to 5, undergoing dialysis, and receiving iron therapy with and without Erythropoietin. Patients with recent infections or acute renal failure were excluded from the study. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS software, where quantitative variables were reported as mean and standard deviation. Categorical variables were compared using the Chi-square test, with statistical significance defined as a p-value of less than 0.05. Results: The mean age of the 329 patients in this study was 41.28 years, with a standard deviation of 12.67. Among the participants, 54.1% were male and 45.9% were female. Of the total, 319 patients (97%) were receiving hemodialysis, while 10 patients (3%) were on peritoneal dialysis. Out of the 329 patients, 204 (62%) were undergoing erythropoietin therapy. Findings indicate that patients receiving erythropoietin had significantly higher serum ferritin levels, with a p-value of less than 0.05. Additionally, among erythropoietin users, 31.37% had hemoglobin levels below 7 g/dL, 55.4% had levels between 7 and 10 g/dL, and 13.2% had hemoglobin levels ranging from 10 to 14 g/dL. Conclusion: Our study concludes that approximately 62% of dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease patients were receiving erythropoietin, and these patients exhibited higher hemoglobin and serum ferritin levels compared to those who were not taking the medication.