ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The use of intravenous iron to correct anemia in end-stage renal diseases (ESRD) has been suspected of catalyzing the production of activated oxygen species and promoting oxidative damage. We investigated the pro-oxidative potential of injected iron in hemodialysis patients. METHODS: In study A, 65 patients with ESRD were studied. 20 patients received weekly infusions of iron polymaltose (maltofer), whereas 45 patients had been off iron therapy for more than 2 months. In study B, 12 patients were investigated during two consecutive hemodialysis sessions, one session without and one session with infusion of 100 mg of maltofer over 4 h. Serum iron status, non-transferrin-bound iron (NTBI) and markers of oxidative stress were studied in blood samples from these patients. RESULTS: In study A, NTBI was detected in 41% of the patients and the proportion of NTBI-positive patients was the same whether or not they received iron therapy. In study B, the serum iron and transferrin saturation index increased during iron infusion and NTBI transiently appeared in some patients but markers of oxidative stress were not significantly affected. CONCLUSION: Although ESRD patients have a high prevalence of NTBI in their serum, no correlation could be established between the presence of NTBI and an increased oxidative stress. The slow infusion of maltofer does not promote a significant increase in the plasma concentration of oxidative stress markers. It may therefore be considered as a safe complement to erythropoietin therapy.