Safety and efficacy of recombinant human erythropoietin in correcting the anemia of patients with chronic renal allograft dysfunction.

Recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) is effective in correcting anemia in hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, and predialysis patients. Limited studies in patients with failing renal allografts suggest a similar efficacy but provide little information concerning benefits, dose requirements, or adverse events. This study examined these considerations in a group of 40 patients (18 men; 22 women) aged 40.3 +/- 13.8 yr with stable, chronic renal allograft failure. All patients had a hemoglobin 250 mumol/L at baseline. Patients received rHuEPO (50 U/kg sc) three times weekly for 24 wk along with iron po if serum ferritin was