Abstract

Background: Functional iron deficiency is a disease remained under diagnosed and undertreated because the

available diagnostic method serum ferritin is not predictive of disease severity and it is false positive in complex

cases. Out of many considered biomarkers like hepcidin, Mean corpuscular volume MCV, mean corpuscular

hemoglobin MCH, reticulocyte hemoglobin concentration (CHr) and many others, serum GDF 15 is a new marker

fAoirm th: iTs od icsoemaspea r e the levels of serum GDF-15 in hemodialysis patients with and without Functional iron deficiency.

Methods: This study was cross-sectional comparative study and was conducted in Department of Physiology,

Shaikh Zayed FPGMI Lahore and Sheikh Zayed hospital nephrology department after taking permission from

concerned departments. Informed consent was taken from patients also. We measured serum GDF 15, serum

ferritin, serum iron, Total iron binding capacity, complete blood count, hemoglobin in 140 hemodialysis patients.

The patients were divided into 2 groups .Group A had functional iron deficiency and Group B did not have

functional iron deficiency. Serum samples were taken, processed and assessed for GDF-15 and ferritin levels using

commercially available ELISA kits. Mean GDF-15 of both groups was determined and compared. P value less than

≤R e0s.0u5lt ws:a. sS ceornusmid eGrDedF -s1t5a tilsetvicealsll ya sreig nsiifgicnaifnict.a ntly elevated in functional iron deficiency patients on hemodialysis.

Mean GDF-15 levels in functional iron deficiency patients were 2759±2709 pg/ml whereas mean GDF -15 levels in

pCaotniecnltuss wioitnh:o Wut efu cnocnticolnuadle i rtohna td seefircuiemn cGyD wFe-1re5 7le8v3e±l1s2 a5r8e pragi/smeld ( pin v Faulunec t<io0n.0a0l 1ir)o. n deficiency hemodialysis patients

as compared to hemodialysis patients without functional iron deficiency . GDF-15 seems to be a new promising

tKoeoyl wtoo dredtse:c Ft uFnIDc.t io nal iron deficieny, growth differentiation factor 15, ferritin