Introduction. Reticulocyte hemoglobin equivalent (RET-He) is a new parameter for evaluating iron status. This study aims to assess diagnostic value and investigate RET-He as early predictor of response to intravenous iron supplementation.Methods. Seventy-two regular hemodialysis patients at Adam Malik Hospital were studied from April to May 2011. RET-He was compared with conventional iron parameters for identification of iron deficiency. Fifteen patients with iron deficiency anemia were selected to receive 100 mg iron sucrose intravenous during every dialysis session (2x/weeks) for 4 weeks.Results. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for RET-He revealed the value of area under the curve was 0.818 (p < 0.0001). Using cutoff level 31.65 pg, RET-He showed 81.5% sensitivity and 61.6% specificity. Serum ferritin (r = 0.499, p < 0.0001) and transferrin saturation/ TSAT (r = 0.592, p<0.0001) were correlated to RET-He. Significant improvement in hemoglobin, hematocrit and RET-He were found after intervention (p = 0.023, p = 0.049 and p = 0.019, respectively).Conclusion. RET-He is a useful marker of iron deficiency and early predictor of response to intravenous iron supplementation in regular hemodialysis patients.

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BACKGROUNDThe number of people with diabetes mellitus (DM) is increasing due to population growth, aging, and increasing prevalence of obesity. Diabetic retinopathy and diabetic nephropathy are two main complications of DM. Some studies suggest a correlation between diabetic nephropathy and diabetic retinopathy. However, other studies found that renal cortex echogenicity is associated with chronicity of kidney disease and renal histopathology. The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a correlation between renal cortex echogenicity as determined by renal ultrasonography and degree of retinopathy as determined by funduscopy in subjects with DM.

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