INDIVIDUAL VARIATIONS IN RECORMON RESPONS E IN PATIENTS WITH TERMINALRENAL-FAILURE - THE ROLE OF IRON-DEFICIENCY

Iron deficiency involvement in the results of long-term replacement th erapy of renal anemia with recormon, a preparation of recombinant huma n erythropoitin, has been studied in chronic renal failure patients on programmed hemodalysis. The effect of recormon subcutaneous administr ation to 51 patients was found reduced in 9 patients; in 5 of them the decreased sensitivity to recormon was attributed to iron deficiency. During a year of treatment the percentage of iron-deficient patients r ose from 9.1 % to 45 % as a result of intensive uptake of iron in the course of erythropoiesis. Iron preparation as a corrective treatment c ontributed to hematocrit increment reducing effective doses of erythro poeitin. In addition to routine control of ferritin and iron it is rec ommended to trace the degree of transferrin saturation in the course o f recombinant erythropoietin therapy.