[ effect of vitamin C supplementation on serum levels of hemoglobin, hematocrit and ferritin in hemodialysis patients: a randomized clinical trial]

ABSTRACT

Anemia is one of the common complications of chronic renal failure and vitamin C can improve anemia through releasing iron from ferritin and its transfer from the reticuloendothelial system to transferrin. This study was performed with the objective of evaluating the effect of vitamin C supplementation on serum levels of hemoglobin, hematocrit, and ferritin in hemodialysis patients. In a double-blind clinical trial, 178 patients with chronic renal failure were randomly divided into three groups of intervention, control, and witness. In the intervention group, 250 mg vitamin C, 250 mg of vitamin C was injected intravenously at the end of each hemodialysis session three times a week for 8 weeks. In the witness group, same amount of placebo saline was injected at the same time, and no intervention was performed in the control group. Laboratory parameters, including serum levels of hemoglobin, hematocrit, and ferritin were measured at the beginning and end of the intervention. Data analysis was performed by Chi-square and one-way ANOVA. The significance level was considered to be p < 0.05. There were significant differences in serum levels of hemoglobin and hematocrit in the intervention group, but, the changes of the serum level of ferritin were not significant in any of the groups. The results of this study showed that vitamin C supplementation in hemodialysis patients can significantly increase the mean serum levels of hemoglobin and hematocrit, however, it cannot significantly change the serum ferritin level