Erythrokinetic Studies during Antimicrobial Therapy in Pulmonary Emphysema1–3

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Erythrokinetic and ferrokinetic studies were performed in 18 patients with pulmonary emphysema. A lower-than-predicted response of the erythrocyte mass to hypoxia was observed in most patients. Other common abnormalities were a high mean corpuscular volume, rapid iron clearance, slight increase in plasma iron transport, and a delay in 59Fe incorporation into circulating erythrocytes. A modest decrease in erythrocyte survival as measured by the 51Cr method was noted in almost a third of the patients. Following these baseline measurements, 10 patients received antimicrobial therapy and the cases were re-evaluated. Although the second study showed prolongation in plasma iron clearance and decreased iron transport in some patients, the erythrocyte mass remained unchanged in all. These data are consistent with the concept of an inadequate erythropoietic response to hypoxia in emphysema. Several observations suggest that complicating infection is not the sole factor accounting for the inadequate erythropoietic response to hypoxia in this condition.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: