EPO therapy & Summary of this week

In this step, Prof. Chen explains the EPO therapy and gives the summary of this week.

First, the side effects for taking EPO therapy include influenza-like symptoms.

Secondly, we need to monitor their hematocrit and hemoglobin level, and check if their iron status is enough. The target Hct/Hb is between 33% (11g/dl) and 36% (12g/dl), and the target iron level, TSAT, need to be more than 20%, with ferritin ≥ 100 ng/ml.

Initially, we have to check out frequently. However, when the patient becomes stable, we can check it quarterly.

Besides, there are other options, including Epoetin α/β and Darbepoetin α. If you want to use long-acting EPO, Micera is a good choice. Recommended initial dose in ESA-naïve is 0.6 ug/kg once every 2 weeks.

Finally, we have learned the management of underline diseases, how to control BP, lipid and glucose, and the treatment of complications.

Which topic impressed you the most during this week? Please share it below.