Mass spectrometry evaluation of the hepcidin-25 assay in the differential diagnosis of iron deficiency anaemia with concurrent inflammation and anaemia of inflammation in elderly patients

Abstract

In this study, mass spectrometry was used to evaluate the hepcidin-25 assay in the differential diagnosis of iron deficiency anaemia with concurrent inflammation and anaemia of inflammation in elderly patients using the absence of stainable bone marrow iron as the gold standard criterion for iron deficiency (ID). In addition, correlation coefficients for hepcidin-25 vs. haematimetric and biochemical iron parameters, and C-reactive protein (CRP) were determined. The optimal cut-off for hepcidin-25 was 31.5 ng/mL corresponding to a sensitivity and specificity of 82% and 95%, respectively, for ID. For ferritin, a sensitivity and specificity of 70% and 100%, respectively, correspond to an optimal cut-off of 41.5 μg/L. Receiver operating characteristics curve analysis revealed that mass spectrometry analysis of hepcidin-25 does not appear to be superior to ferritin in the diagnosis of ID in elderly anaemic patients with concurrent inflammation. Hepcidin-25 shows a strong positive correlation with ferritin, and also correlates positively with CRP, in this patient population.

Keywords: anaemia of inflammation; hepcidin-25; iron deficiency.