Erythropoietin and intravenous iron therapy in postpartum anaemia.

Background. We assessed whether recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) enhances a rise in haemoglobin concentration in postpartum anaemia compared to intravenous iron alone. Design. Some 60 patients with haemoglobin values≤80 g/l were randomized within 72 h after parturition into 3 different treatment groups. All 3 groups were given a total dose of 450 mg intravenous iron sucrose. In addition, 2 groups were given 20,000 or 40,000 U of total rhEPO. All treatments were given on 2 occasions with an interval of 3 days (day 0 and 3). Results. Haemoglobin increased significantly in all 3 groups over time (p<0.001), and there were no differences between the different treatment groups on any day of evaluation (p=0.59). The total mean increment in haemoglobin in all subjects was 18 g/l after 1 week, and 28 g/l after 2 weeks. Conclusion. In comparison to intravenous iron alone, the addition of rhEPO did not further increase haemoglobin concentration in women with postpartum anaemia.