Glossary
Your A to Z listing of the most commonly used terms for describing anaemia and kidney disease.
| Anaemia | A blood disorder characterized by either a deficiency in the number of circulating red blood cells or an abnormally low level of haemoglobin. |
|---|---|
| Biosimilar | A new biological medicinal product claimed to be “similar” to a reference medicinal product. |
| Bone marrow | The soft, modified connective tissue inside the bones which produces blood cells, including red blood cells. |
| Chronic kidney disease (CKD) | Slow and progressive loss of kidney function over time, often resulting in permanent kidney failure. |
| Complete blood count | A test that determines the number of white blood cells, red blood cells, platelets, haemoglobin and haematocrit. |
| Creatinine | A bi-product derived primarily from metabolism of creatine. Creatinine is filtered from the blood by the kidneys and can be used as a diagnositic indicator of kidney function. |
| Dialysis | The use of a machine to provide artificial kidney function to filter the blood in patients with kidney failure. |
| End-stage renal disease (ESRD) | A condition in which kidney function is no longer adequate to sustain life – due to total and permanent kidney failure. |
|---|---|
| Epoetin | Recombinant human erythropoietin that is used in the treatment of renal anaemia. |
| Erythrocyte | See red blood cell. |
| Erythropoiesis | The production of red blood cells. |
| Erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) | Synthetic form of erythropoietin that stimulates the production of red blood cells in the bone marrow. |
| Erythropoietin | An endogenous hormone produced primarily by the kidneys that stimulates red blood cell production in the bone marrow. |
| Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) | An equation that estimates the glomerular filtration rate of the kidneys by taking age, ethnic origin, gender and serum creatinine levels into account. |
| Ferritin | Is a protein that stores iron and is found in the liver, spleen and bone marrow. |
| Folate | Also known as vitamin B6 . A vitamin required for red blood cell production. |
| Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) | An important index of kidney function which describes the volume of water filtered out of the plasma by the nephron in the kidneys each minute. |
| Glomerulonephritis | A group of inflammatory diseases that cause damage to the nephrons. |
| Haemoglobin | An iron-containing respiratory pigment in red blood cells that transports oxygen from the lungs to the tissues of the body. |
| Haemoglobin variability | Repeated fluctuation of haemoglobin levels outside the target range. |
| Haemolysis | Destruction of red blood cells. |
| Hypertension | A disorder characterized by persistently elevated blood pressure. |
| Kidney failure | Loss of kidney function. (See End-stage renal disease) |
|---|---|
| Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) | A condition where the left ventricle of the heart becomes thickened which reduces the ability of the heart to pump blood efficiently. |
| Nephron | The functional unit of the kidney that removes waste and extra fluids from the blood. |
|---|
| Platelet | A type of blood cell that promotes the formation of blood clots to prevent and stop bleeding. |
|---|---|
| Polycystic kidney disease | An inherited progressive disease characterized by formation of multiple cysts of varying size throughout both kidneys and resulting in destruction of the kidney tissue. |
| Pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) | A serious condition in which erythropoiesis almost completely ceases. A patient affected with PRCA experiences a decrease in haemoglobin level of about 0.1 g/dL per day and has a reticulocyte count less than 10,000/µL. |
| Red blood cell (erythrocyte) | A type of blood cell that transports oxygen to and from the tissues. |
| Red blood cell index | A test that provides information about the size, weight, and haemoglobin concentration of red blood cells. These tests are useful in diagnosing and classifying the different types of anaemia. |
| Renal anaemia | Anaemia caused by chronic kidney disease. |
| Reticulocyte count | A measure of the number of reticulocytes, or immature red blood cells in the circulation. This test provides information about red blood cell production and function of the bone marrow. |
| Transferrin | A protein in blood plasma that transports iron within the body. |
|---|
| Vitamin B12 | A vitamin occurring in meats and animal products that is required for red blood cell production. |
|---|
