Change in red blood cell distribution width during the last years of life in geriatric patients

Objectives Most of the studies that evaluate the association between red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and mortality assess it on a single occasion instead of doing so through serial measurements. Very few studies have investigated repeated measurements of RDW and its prognostic value, and most of them are focused on patients with cardiovascular diseases. RDW is a dynamic value so we aimed at determining the prognostic value of sequential RDW assessment in the last years of life in patients enrolled in a Department of Geriatrics.