What is EPO (erythropoietin)?
- Type of drug: Erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA). Examples include:
- Darbepoetin alfa – an injection
- Roxadustat – a tablet. It is a hypoxia-inducible factor-prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor (HIF-PHI)
- Use: anaemia secondary to CKD (and other blood diseases)
- Dose:
- Darbepoetin alfa – typical dose 30 mcg once a week
- Roxadustat – typical dose 100 mg 3x a week
- Side-effects: arthralgia; embolism and thrombosis; hypertension; stroke; fistulas (AVFs) and grafts (AVGs) for haemodialysis may clot
- Monitor: haemoglobin (Hb); BP.
But. What is erythropoietin really?
EPO is a naturally occurring glycoprotein made mainly by the kidneys, in response to hypoxia (lack of oxygen in the cells); it stimulates red blood cell production (erythropoiesis) in the bone marrow.
So. What is an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA)?
ESAs are medications (synthetic EPO-like substances) which stimulate the bone marrow to make red blood cells.
Other resources
CKD drug side-effects
CKD patient information (CKD Explained’s 30+ core articles about CKD)
Erythropoietin (UHCW patient information)
Darbepoetin alfa (BNF)
Roxadustat (BNF)
Review article: erythropoietin stimulating agents (ESAs) (Schoener, 2023)
Review article: darbepoetin alfa (Carerra, 2009)
Review article: roxadustat (Tang, 2021)
Last Reviewed on 5 May 2024