An audit of anaemia in haemodialysis patients Essay

An audit of anaemia in haemodialysis patients - Essay Example According to the NICE guidelines, published by the Royal College of Physicians, "Conventionally anaemia is defined as a haemoglobin concentration lower than[normal as defined by WHO]. This cut-off figure ranges from 11 grams per decilitre (g/dl) for pregnant women and for children between 6 months and 5 years of age, to 12 g/dl for non-pregnant women, and to 13 g/dl for men."1 "In 2002, Hsu et. al. analyzed data from the Third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES III) (n=15,837) and found low iron indices to be frequently present at all levels of reduced creatinine clearance (CrCl)."2 Additionally, "[m]ore than 50% of CKD patients with an[a]emia were iron deficient, as indicated by serum ferritin 13 g/dl, but that there was no evidence either way for intermediate levels (11.5-13 g/dl) in comparison with higher or lower levels."5 One may wonder if particular medications can cause someone to become anaemic. "Some patients react to drugs because of inherited susceptibility, such as patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PD) deficiency. G-6-PD is an important enzyme that buffers the mature red cell against oxidative stress. In individuals who are deficient in