Prevalence of anemia in predialysis chronic kidney disease patients

• Published in: Saudi journal of kidney diseases and transplantation 2011-05, Vol.22 (3), p.456-463
• Main Authors: Shaheen, Fa. M., Souqiyyeh, Muhammad Ziyad, al-Attar, Bishr Adib, Karkar, Ayman, al-Jazairi, Ayman Muhammad Hikmat, Badawi, Layla Siraj, Ballut, Umar Mahmud, al-Hukmi, Ali Hasan, Najib, Muhammad, al-Humrani, Muhammad Atiyyah, Barhamein, Majidah Yasin, Ahmad, Adil Mansur, Khardaji, Mahir Muhammad, Said, Said Abd al-Salam
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Anemia; Anemia - complications; Anemia - epidemiology; Anemia - metabolism; Chi-Square Distribution; Chronic kidney failure; Chronic renal failure; Cohort Studies; Complications and side effects; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diabetes Mellitus - metabolism; Diagnosis; Female; Glomerular Filtration Rate; Hemoglobins - metabolism; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prevalence; Prevalence studies (Epidemiology); Renal Insufficiency, Chronic - complications; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic - physiopathology; Risk factors; Saudi Arabia - epidemiology; Severity of Illness Index; Young Adult; الأمراض; الأمراض المزمنة; التشخيص; الشلل; الفشل الكلوي; الكلى; المرضى; فقر الدم
• ISSN: 1319-2442; 2320-3838

To evaluate the prevalence of anemia in a large cohort that comprises patients in different stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), we conducted a multi-center cross-sectional study of a cohort of CKD patients who have not started dialysis. The study patients were recruited from the nephrology clinics in 11 different medical centers distributed all over the regions of the KSA. For the estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR), we used the Chronic Kidney Disease-Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) equation. There were 250 study patients who fulfilled the criteria for the study. The patients were stratified according to their GFR as follows : stage 1 : 19 patients, stage 2 : 35 patients, stage 3 : 67 patients, stage 4: 68 patients, and stage 5 : 61 patients. The composite of proteinuria and abnormal imaging in stages 1 and 2 was satisfied in 100 % of the cases. The prevalence of anemia was elevated for the hemoglobin levels below 12 g / dL (the level at which the evaluation of anemia in CKD should be initiated) in the different stages of CKD, that is, 42%, 33%, 48%, 71%, and 82% in the stages from 1 to 5, respectively. The prevalence was also elevated for the hemoglobin levels below 11 g / dL (the minimum hemoglobin level at which therapy should be initiated with erythropoietin), that is, 21%, 17%, 31%, 49%, and 72%, respectively for stages from 1 to 5. In conclusion, we found a large prevalence of anemia among the CKD population in Saudi Arabia, and the burden of patients who require treatment with erythropoietin is considerably large. However, the response to therapy will not require large doses according to the availability of long-acting erythropoiesis stimulating agents, which will render the therapy more convenient and less expensive.