Table 2.
Profile of patients analyzed
| Item | 10.0≤Hb<11.0 | 11.0≤Hb<12.0 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VPS-HA | PS-Con | P Value | VPS-HA | PS-Con | P Value | |
| No. of patients analyzed | 74 | 67 | 40 | 32 | ||
| Men (%) | 63.5 | 58.2 | 0.52 | 67.5 | 68.8 | 0.91 |
| Age (yr; mean ± SD) | 64.6±11.4 | 61.5±12.2 | 0.14 | 57.4±13.7 | 62.8±12.5 | 0.12 |
| Body mass index | 21.2±3.4 | 21.2±3.5 | 0.56 | 20.9±2.6 | 21.4±3.0 | 0.59 |
| Dialysis period (yr) | 80.4±67.3 | 73.5±74.1 | 0.38 | 92.3±79.8 | 84.1±72.5 | 0.87 |
| ESA dose | ||||||
| rHuEPO (U/wk) | 4500 (2250, 4500) | 4500 (3000, 6000) | 1.00 | 3000 (1500, 5625) | 3000 (2625, 4500) | 0.74 |
| DA (μg/wk) | 20 (15, 30) | 20 (15, 30) | 0.81 | 20 (15, 20) | 10 (10, 15) | <0.001a |
| Iron agent treatment (%) | 27.0 | 17.9 | 0.20 | 7.5 | 25.0 | 0.04a |
| Antihypertensive (ARB and/or ACE; %) | 56.8 | 52.2 | 0.59 | 55.0 | 46.9 | 0.49 |
| Laboratory tests | ||||||
| White cell count (/μl) | 5590±1653 | 5770±1909 | 0.74 | 5879±1608 | 5728±1680 | 0.67 |
| Red cell count (×104/μl) | 331.7±27.5 | 332.6±31.5 | 0.85 | 350.9±37.3 | 343.6±34.8 | 0.20 |
| Hb (g/dl) | 10.7±0.8 | 10.7±0.8 | 0.98 | 11.2±0.9 | 11.1±0.9 | 0.24 |
| Hematocrit (%) | 32.5±2.5 | 32.4±2.5 | 0.80 | 34.4±3.1 | 33.4±2.9 | 0.18 |
| Platelet count (×104/μl) | 18.0±6.1 | 17.4±6.3 | 0.48 | 18.9±5.6 | 18.0±5.7 | 0.59 |
| Reticulocyte count (‰) | 13.6±7.4 | 14.8±8.3 | 0.35 | 12.9±6.7 | 12.6±5.4 | 0.94 |
| Iron (μg/dl) | 68.7±23.2 | 75.4±48.5 | 0.90 | 74.0±23.8 | 72.6±21.0 | 0.89 |
| Ferritin (ng/ml) | 180.9 (85.7, 321.8) ±171.8 | 105.0 (55.9, 216.0) | 0.04a | 93.7 (48.8, 124.5) | 132.3 (88.0, 195.6) | 0.01a |
| Transferrin (mg/dl) | 172.1±40.4 | 176.0±35.8 | 0.30 | 187.2±35.3 | 169.9±26.3 | 0.04a |
| TSAT (%) | 29.3±10.3 | 32.5±22.1 | 0.61 | 29.5±8.5 | 31.9±9.2 | 0.34 |
| Indirect bilirubin (mg/dl) | 0.22±0.10 | 0.20±0.10 | 0.20 | 0.20±0.11 | 0.25±0.12 | 0.03a |
| hs-CRP (mg/dl) | 0.14±0.28 | 0.13±0.16 | 0.29 | 0.14±0.23 | 0.18±0.27 | 0.18 |
| Dialysate endotoxin (EU/ml) | ||||||
| <0.001 | 75.0% | 77.4% | >0.99 | 84.6% | 77.4% | 0.99 |
| 0.001–0.05 | 13.2% | 11.3% | 10.3% | 12.9% | ||
| 0.05–0.5 | 11.8% | 8.1% | 5.1% | 9.7% | ||
| <0.5 | 0.0% | 3.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | ||
Values are mean ± SD or median (25th, 75th for ESA dose and ferritin). Statistical testing of baseline characteristics between the VPS-HA and PS-con groups was performed using the Mann–Whitney U and chi-squared tests. Each patient was allocated to target Hb range depending on one’s prestudy level of Hb measured for 3 months, and the target Hb level was kept during this trial. Hb, hemoglobin; VPS-HA, vitamin E-bonded high-flux polysulfone dialysis membrane; PS-con, type 4 polysulfone dialysis membrane; ESA, erythropoiesis-stimulating agent; rHuEPO, human recombinant erythropoietin; DA, darbepoetin alfa; ARB, angiotensin II receptor blocker; ACE, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor; TSAT, transferrin saturation; hs-CRP, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein.
P<0.05.