Conditions: Anemia
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 101
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
This 2 arm study will compare the efficacy and safety of monthly administration of intravenous (IV) Mircera versus epoetin alfa for the maintenance of hemoglobin levels in hemodialysis patients with chronic renal anemia. Participants currently receiving maintenance treatment with epoetin alfa will be randomized either to receive monthly injections of 120, 200 or 360 micrograms Mircera, with the starting dose derived from the dose of epoetin alfa they were receiving in the week preceding study start, or to continue on epoetin alfa treatment. The anticipated duration of study is 32 weeks, and the target sample size is 146 participants.

Detailed description:

Arms:
arm 1: Participants received starting dose of 120, 200 or 360 mcg of C.E.R.A IV once monthly for 6 months. The starting dose was based on the dose of epoetin alfa administered in Week -1. arm 2: Participants received IV injection of 6000 International Units (IU) of epoetin alfa every 3 weeks (q3wk) during the Stability Verification Period (SVP; Week -4 to -1), and 7443 IU of epoetin alfa q3wk during Dose Titration Period (DTP; Week 0 to 15), 7363 IU of epoetin alfa q3wk during Efficacy Evaluation Period (EEP; Week 16 to 23) up to 23 weeks.

Interventions: intervention 1: methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta intervention 2: Epoetin alfa
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: 120, 200 or 360 micrograms iv/month (starting dose) intervention 2: As prescribed

Protocol document: