Endogenous carbon monoxide production in patients with hemolytic anemia.

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Abstract
The relationship of endogenous CO production to red blood cell and hemoglobin catabolism in 7 patients with hemolytic anemia was investigated. The rate of CO production was markedly elevated in all of the patients and correlated closely with the rate of blood heme destruction calculated from radio-chromate red blood cell labeling studies (r = + 0.94). Greater amounts of CO were produced in 6 of 8 studies than could be explained on the basis of blood heme catabolism. The average molar ratio was 1. 41 [plus or minus] 0. 28 (SD). The fraction of CO apparently not explainable on the basis of circulating hemoglobin catabolism, "extra CO, " may be a by-product of the metabolic processes that cause "shunt" bile pigment. Mean erythrocyte life-spans can be calculated from the rate of CO production corrected for extra CO with an error of [plus or minus] 3 days (SD).