Kopf A, Barbanel C, Reach I, Carayon A, Laine D, Goldstein A, Degoulet P
Nephrologie. 1984;5(2):77-81.
In order to determine whether serum ferritin assay has any advantages compared with usual hematologic parameters, serum ferritin was assessed in 70 hemodialysed patients. It was positively correlated with the number of blood units infused, but there was no correlation with iron treatment, serum iron or the degree of anemia. However, the interpretation of the results is difficult, because of the large dispersion of serum ferritin levels. Therefore, the determination of serum ferritin concentration cannot be recommended as a current method to follow-up and manage anemic chronic hemodialysed patients, especially when the cost of the test is taken into account.
