PHILADELPHIA—Severe anemia is independently associated with prolonged bleeding time in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), researchers reported at the 2014 Kidney Week meeting.
In a retrospective study of 1,022 patients with CKD, researchers at Chonnam National University Medical School in Gwangju, South Korea, found that the prevalence of abnormal bleeding time increased with decreasing hemoglobin (Hb) levels: 25% for patients with an Hb level of 10 mg/dL or higher; 31.9% for patients with Hb levels of at least 8 but less than 10 mg/dL; and 43.4% for patients with Hb levels below 8 mg/dL.
On multivariate analysis, an Hb level below 8 mg/dL was associated with 82% increased odds of abnormal bleeding time compared with a level of 10 mg/dL or higher, even after adjusting for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and other potential confounders.
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Compared with patients who had normal bleeding times, those with prolonged bleeding times—defined as a bleeding time greater than 182 seconds—were older and had lower eGFR, Hb levels, hematocrit, and platelet counts and higher blood urea nitrogen and creatinine levels.
