Anemia in the News

A federal advisory committee met September 11, 2007 to address restrictions for anemia drugs used to treat patients with kidney disease. The panel advising the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded:
• Against setting an upper target hemoglobin (Hb) limit of 11 g/dL for both predialysis or dialysis patients with kidney disease
• More flexibility is necessary in designating a target hemoglobin level
• There lacks enough data to distinguish differences between hemoglobin levels of 11 and 12 g/dL

The FDA also said due to inadequate data it will propose to remove language from anemia drug labels which state the drug improves patients’ quality of life.

Last Updated: September 12, 2007