Does long-term treatment of renal anaemia with recombinant erythropoietin influence oxidative stress in haemodialysed patients?
GROUND: Patients with end-stage renal failure undergoing haemodialysis (HD) are exposed to oxidative stress. Increased levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) were demonstrated in plasma of uraemic patients, indicating accelerated lipid peroxidation (LPO) as a consequence of multiple pathogenetic factors. The aim of our investigation was to examine the role of renal anaemia in oxidative stress in HD patients. METHODS: MDA and 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE) were measured in three groups of patients undergoing HD: group I comprised eight patients with a blood haemoglobin (Hb) < 10 g/dl (mean Hb = 8.1+/-1.3 g/dl), and group II were eight patients with a Hb > 10 g/dl (mean Hb=12.4+/-1.9g/dl); none of these 16 patients had been treated with human recombinant erythropoietin (rHuEpo). Group III comprised 27 patients with a mean Hb of 10.5+/-1.6 g/dl after long-term rHuEpo treatment. RESULTS: Mean plasma concentrations of both MDA and HNE were significantly higher (P<0.0001) in all 43 HD patients than in 20 h
