Correlation between hepcidin level and iron, mineral metabolism in maintenance hemodialysis patients

Objective To investigate the correlation between serum hepcidin level and iron, mineral metabolism in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. Methods Seventy-five MHD patients were selected. The serum hepcidin, serum iron and mineral metabolism indexes were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent double antibody sandwich method, and their correlation was analyzed. Results The level of serum hepcidin in 75 MHD patients was 87-264 μg/L. The patients were divided into 3 groups according to serum hepcidin level. In group A, the serum hepcidin level of 26 cases was 200 μg/L. There were no significant differences in age, gender, albumin and serum calcium among 3 groups (P > 0.05). The levels of ferritin, transferrin saturation (TS), serum phosphorus and parathyroid hormone (PTH) increased in the 3 groups as the hepcidin level increased, while hemoglobin, serum iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and 25 hydroxy vitamin D decreased significantly, and there were statistical differences (P 0.05). Conclusions The serum hepcidin level in MHD patients is closely related to iron and mineral metabolism. Key words: Renal dialysis; Iron; Minerals; Hepcidin