Eva Karaskova
Palacky University and University Hospital, Czech Republic
Title: Hepcidin in a newly diagnosed inflammatory bowel disease in children
Biography
Biography: Eva Karaskova
Abstract
Background & Aim: Hepcidin is a central regulator of iron homeostasis. Its production is also influenced by systemic inflammation. This study aims to compare hepcidin levels in pediatric patients newly diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC) and to determine the association of hepcidin levels with laboratory and clinical parameters of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) activity.
Method: 76 children with IBD (53 with CD and 23 with UC) children with IBD newly diagnosed between January 2012 and September 2016 were enrolled in this comparative cross-sectional study. We analyzed levels of serum hepcidin, C-reactive protein, iron, ferritin, soluble transferrin receptors, blood count and fecal calprotectin in all subjects. Serum hepcidin levels were measured by reverse-phase liquid chromatography. Pediatric Crohn’s Disease Activity Index (PCDAI) was evaluated in children with CD and Pediatric Ulcerative Colitis Activity Index (PUCAI) was used for assessment of UC disease activity.
Result: Subjects with CD (n=53) had significantly higher serum hepcidin levels compared to subjects with UC (n=23)-22.6
(range 8.5-65.0 ng/ml) vs. 6.5 (range 2.4-25.8 ng/ml) (p<0.05). Hepcidin was independently associated with ferritin levels in all IBD patients (p<0.05). Moreover, there was a significant positive correlation between hepcidin and platelet count (p<0.05) in children with CD and a negative correlation between hepcidin and fecal calprotectin (p<0.05) in children with UC.
Conclusion: Different hepcidin levels between children with newly diagnosed CD and UC suggest distinct contribution of iron deficiency and/or systemic inflammation to anemia and may help clinicians choose the best anti-anemic treatment.