EPOCARES Study 2010

Methods	Study design: RCT Study duration: NS
Participants	Setting: multicentre Country: The Netherlands Stage of CKD: eGFR 20 to 70 mL/min/1.73 m² Number: epoetin beta (20), no treatment (13) Median age, IQR (years): epoetin beta (77, 70 to 81), no treatment (72, 64 to 67 (error in paper)) Sex (M/F): epoetin beta (12/8), no treatment (9/4) Other characteristics: cardiorenal syndrome with chronic heart failure, CKD and anaemia; anaemia was defined as Hb between 10.3 and 12.6 g/dL in men and between 10.3 and 11.9 g/dL in women Exclusion criteria: Erythropoietic therapy within 6 months before randomisation; uncontrolled hypertension (SBP > 160 mm Hg; DBP > 100 mm Hg); uncontrolled diabetes (HbA1c > 8.0%); kidney transplantation; proteinuria > 3.5 g/L; acute kidney failure or rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis; hyperparathyroidism (PTH > 40 pmol/L); haemoglobinopathies; bleeding or haemolysis as a cause of anaemia; deficiency of iron; folate and/or vitamin B12; chronic inflammatory disease or clinically significant infection; haematological malignancy or solid tumour < 3 years ago
Interventions	Treatment Epoetin beta 50 IU/kg/wk for 6 months Control No treatment for 6 months Iron supplementation Oral
Outcomes	Primary study outcome Hepcidin levels Outcomes extracted for meta‐analysis All‐cause mortality Major cardiovascular events Stroke ESKD
Notes	Funding: F. Hoffman‐La Roche Trials registration: NCT00356733 Contact with study authors for additional information: contacted, additional information provided by sponsor
Risk of bias
Bias	Authors' judgement	Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias)	Unclear risk	Not described
Allocation concealment (selection bias)	Unclear risk	Not described
Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) All outcomes	High risk	"Open‐label randomised trial"
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	Not described
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	Not described
Selective reporting (reporting bias)	Low risk	Major cardiovascular outcomes available
Other bias	Low risk	None apparent;