What causes Anemia in Chronic Kidney Disease ?
When kidneys are diseased or damaged, they do not make enough EPO. As a result, the bone marrow makes fewer red blood cells, causing anemia. When blood has fewer red blood cells, it deprives the body of the oxygen it needs.
                
Other common causes of anemia in people with kidney disease include blood loss from hemodialysis and low levels of the following nutrients found in food:
                
- iron  - vitamin B12  - folic acid
                
These nutrients are necessary for red blood cells to make hemoglobin, the main oxygen-carrying protein in the red blood cells.
                
If treatments for kidney-related anemia do not help, the health care provider will look for other causes of anemia, including
                
- other problems with bone marrow  - inflammatory problemssuch as arthritis, lupus, or inflammatory bowel diseasein which the bodys immune system attacks the bodys own cells and organs  - chronic infections such as diabetic ulcers  - malnutrition