Prognostic value of lactate dehydrogenase activity in myelodysplastic syndromes

Abstract Several prognostic factors for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) have been defined in the past. One of these factors appears to be the serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity. However, the precise predictive value of an elevated LDH level with regard to AML transformation remains uncertain. In this study, the prognostic value of the LDH activity was examined in a cohort of 180 patients with de novo MDS (median age 71 years [27–93]; f/m-ratio 1:1.2; RA: n =53; RARS: n =37; RAEB: n =50; RAEBT: n =19; CMML: n =21). Significant differences in LDH activities were found among FAB groups ( P P P P