Study Evaluates Treatment for Patients with Anemia from Chronic Kidney Disease

A new study published in the August 2005 issue of Clinical Nephrology suggests that less frequent dosing of PROCRIT ® may result in a similar response to that of weekly dosing for maintaining hemoglobin, or red blood cell, levels in patients with anemia related to chronic kidney disease who are not on dialysis. More than 20 million Americans — or one in nine adults — are estimated to have chronic kidney disease, and as many as two thirds of these patients develop anemia.

A total of 519 patients with anemia related to chronic kidney disease not on dialysis were enrolled in the open-label study, Clinical Evaluation of PROCRIT® for Maintenance Phase Treatment of Patients with Anemia due to Chronic Kidney Disease, referred to as the PROMPT study. The study found that approximately 90 percent of patients dosed with PROCRIT® once every two weeks and more than 75 percent of patients dosed once every three or four weeks maintained hemoglobin levels greater than or equal to 11 grams per deciliter of blood.

The product labeling for PROCRIT® recommends a target hemoglobin range of between 10 and 12 grams per deciliter of blood. Maintenance of hemoglobin at these levels is consistent with the Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative guidelines, published in 2001 by the National Kidney Foundation.

"The results of the PROMPT study suggest that PROCRIT® may provide sufficient hemoglobin levels in patients even when dosed less than once weekly for maintenance therapy," said the study's principal investigator, Robert Provenzano, MD, FACP, Division of Nephrology, St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, Michigan. "Since PROCRIT® is most often administered by doctors or nurses, this finding could ultimately provide patients with anemia related to chronic kidney disease increased convenience and flexibility when planning their doctor visits." (Ortho Biotech Products, L.P, http://www.procrit.com/)