Recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEpo) increases haemoglobin mass (Hbmass) and maximal oxygen uptake ( O2 max).PurposeThis study defined the time course of changes in Hbmass, O2 max as well as running time trial performance following 4 weeks of rHuEpo administration to determine whether the laboratory observations would translate into actual improvements in running performance in the field.Methods19 trained men received rHuEpo injections of 50 IU•kg−1 body mass every two days for 4 weeks. Hbmass was determined weekly using the optimized carbon monoxide rebreathing method until 4 weeks after administration. O2 max and 3,000 m time trial performance were measured pre, post administration and at the end of the study.ResultsRelative to baseline, running performance significantly improved by ∼6% after administration (10∶30±1∶07 min:sec vs. 11∶08±1∶15 min:sec, p<0.001) and remained significantly enhanced by ∼3% 4 weeks after administration (10∶46±1∶13 min:sec, p<0.001), while O2 max was also significantly increased post administration (60.7±5.8 mL•min−1•kg−1 vs. 56.0±6.2 mL•min−1•kg−1, p<0.001) and remained significantly increased 4 weeks after rHuEpo (58.0±5.6 mL•min−1•kg−1, p = 0.021). Hbmass was significantly increased at the end of administration compared to baseline (15.2±1.5 g•kg−1 vs. 12.7±1.2 g•kg−1, p<0.001). The rate of decrease in Hbmass toward baseline values post rHuEpo was similar to that of the increase during administration (−0.53 g•kg−1•wk−1, 95% confidence interval (CI) (−0.68, −0.38) vs. 0.54 g•kg−1•wk−1, CI (0.46, 0.63)) but Hbmass was still significantly elevated 4 weeks after administration compared to baseline (13.7±1.1 g•kg−1, p<0.001).ConclusionRunning performance was improved following 4 weeks of rHuEpo and remained elevated 4 weeks after administration compared to baseline. These field performance effects coincided with rHuEpo-induced elevated O2 max and Hbmass.

BackgroundAnemia is the most common hematological abnormality in Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive patients and a significant predictor of its progression to AIDS or death. This study was aimed to assess the prevalence of anemia before and after initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) among HIV positive patients attending Black Lion Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.MethodsA cross sectional study was conducted from January to April, 2017 in Black Lion Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 255 patients on ART were selected using simple random sampling techniques. Socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the study subjects were collected using structured questionnaire. Measurements of complete blood cell counts and CD4 + T cell counts were made using Sysmex XT 2000i hematology analyzer and BD FACS Count CD4 analyzer, respectively. Statistical analysis of the data (Chi-square, paired T-test, logistic regression) was done using SPSS version 20. A p-value < 0.05 was considered as significant.ResultsPrevalence of anemia before and after ART initiation was 41.9 and 11.4% respectively. There are a significance differences in CD4 + T cell count, RBC count, hemoglobin values and RBC indices in HIV patients before and after ART initiation (p-value < 0.05). WHO clinical stages and CD4+ T cell counts were found to be associated with the prevalence of anemia before ART initiation. Among the total number of anemic cases, normocytic normochromic anemia was present in 71% of the cases before ART and in 58.6% of the cases after ART. The prevalence of macrocytic normochromic anemia before and after ART initiation was 4.7 and 27.6% respectively.ConclusionsIt is evident from this study that there is a remarkable reduction in the prevalence of anemia after ART initiation. However, a significant proportion of HIV patients remained anemic after 6 months of ART initiation suggesting the need for routine screening and proper treatment of anemia to mitigate its adverse effects.

BackgroundHematological abnormalities are common in HIV positive patients. Of these, thrombocytopenia is a known complication which has been associated with a variety of bleeding disorders. However, its magnitude and related factors have not been well-characterized in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of thrombocytopenia before and after initiation of HAART among HIV positive patients attending Black Lion Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.MethodsA cross sectional study was conducted from February to April 2017 in Black Lion Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 176 patients on HAART were selected using simple random sampling techniques. Socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the study patients were collected using structured questionnaire. Measurements of platelet counts and CD4 + T cell counts were made using Sysmex XT 2000i hematology analyzer and BD FACS Count CD4 analyzer, respectively. Statistical analysis of the data (Paired T- test and binary logistic regression) was done using SPSS version 20. P-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.ResultsA total of 176 patients (Age > 18 years old) were enrolled in this study and had a mean age of 40.08 ± 9.38 years. There was significant increase in the mean values of platelet counts (218.44 ± 106.6 × 103/μl vs 273.65 ± 83.8 × 103/μl, p < 0.001) after six months of HAART initiation compared to the baseline. Prevalence of thrombocytopenia before and after HAART initiation was 25 and 5.7% respectively. HIV patients whose CD4 counts < 200 Cells/μl were more likely to have thrombocytopenia than HIV patients whose CD4 count ≥350 Cells/μl. However, it was not statistically associated with prevalence of thrombocytopenia.ConclusionsThis study has shown that the prevalence of thrombocytopenia after HAART initiation was decreased significantly. Based on our results, a number of study participants still had thrombocytopenia after initiation of HAART. Therefore, continuous screening for thrombocytopenia among HIV infected patients should be performed to decrease the risk of morbidity and mortality.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12878-018-0103-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

No abstract