title: Reticulocyte hemoglobin equivalent as a potential marker for diagnosis of iron deficiency.
abstract: Evaluation of parameters relating to serum ferritin and iron is critically important in the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia (IDA). The recent development of automated systems for hematology analysis has made it possible to measure reticulocyte hemoglobin equivalent (RET-He), which is thought to reflect iron content in reticulocytes, in the same sample used for complete blood count tests. If RET-He is, indeed, capable of evaluating iron deficiency (ID), it would be useful for immediate diagnosis of IDA. In the present study, we examined the usefulness of RET-He for diagnosis of ID. Blood samples were obtained from 211 patients. Anemia was defined as hemoglobin (Hb) level of <12 g/dL. Iron deficiency was defined as serum ferritin level of <12 ng/mL. Patients were classified into four groups: IDA, ID, control, and non-ID with anemia. Patients in the IDA group had significantly lower RET-He levels than those in the control group. RET-He correlated with serum ferritin in the IDA and ID groups. The area under the curve for RET-He was 0.902, indicating that RET-He facilitates the diagnosis of ID with high accuracy. RET-He changed in parallel with changes in Hb during iron administration for 21 IDA patients. Our results indicate that RET-He may be a clinically useful marker for determining ID in the general population.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasumichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Toki
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan. ikuta@asahikawa-med.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Katsuya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ikuta
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Laboratory and Blood Center, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshie
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawahara
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Laboratory and Blood Center, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Noriyasu
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Niizeki
authors.affiliation: Asahikawa-Kosei General Hospital, 24-111, 1 jyo-dori, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8211, Japan.
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kon
authors.affiliation: Engaru-Kosei General Hospital, 3-1-5 Odori-Kita, Engaru, Hokkaido, 099-0404, Japan.
authors.forename: Motoki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Enomoto
authors.affiliation: Moriyama Hospital, 6 jyo 8 dori, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 070-0038, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tada
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Mayumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hatayama
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Masayo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Motohiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shindo
authors.affiliation: Moriyama Hospital, 6 jyo 8 dori, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 070-0038, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.affiliation: Engaru-Kosei General Hospital, 3-1-5 Odori-Kita, Engaru, Hokkaido, 099-0404, Japan.
authors.forename: Mitsutaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inoue
authors.affiliation: Asahikawa-Kosei General Hospital, 24-111, 1 jyo-dori, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8211, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Mikihiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujiya
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido, 078-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshikatsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okumura
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000740:Anemia / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D018798:Anemia, Iron-Deficiency / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015415:Biomarkers; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004909:Erythrocyte Indices; D005260:Female; D006454:Hemoglobins; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012372:ROC Curve; D012156:Reticulocytes; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D006454:Hemoglobins; D007501:Iron
keywords: Diagnosis; Iron; Iron deficiency; Iron deficiency anemia; Reticulocyte hemoglobin equivalent (RET-He)