The assessment of iron deficiency biomarkers in both anemic and non-anemic dialysis patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

All available articles on dialysis patients worldwide with or without iron deficiency were reviewed. Articles published 1 January 2015 to 30 June 2021 were reviewed in Literature databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and EBSCO). 163 articles were found in the initial search, the full text of the article was reviewed, and finally, 144 studies were selected. Most existing studies have found that serum ferritin and Hb concentrations are appropriate for defining ID. Several studies have reported transferrin saturation (TSAT) as a complementary diagnostic test. Therapeutic goals in studies selected to treat iron deficiency were to increase the hemoglobin concentration to 1012 g / dL. Some articles have reported that TSAT varies from 20% to 50% in dialysis patients. The mean value of iron deficiency biomarkers in anemic and non-anemic dialysis patients was assessed. Clinicians should notice hemoglobin and serum ferritin, especially in dialysis patients, and these two biomarkers can be a mark for iron deficiency diagnosis in dialysis patients. In contrast, the mean level of transferrin saturation in dialysis patients is normal.