Hypervitaminosis A: a contributing factor to anemia in regular dialysis patients.

In order to evaluate the toxicity of hypervitaminosis A in regular dialysis patients, the relationships between the plasma levels of vitamin A, retinol binding protein (RBP), prealbumin (PA), and biochemical parameters were studied in 47 patients. Plasma vitamin A levels were inversely correlated with hematocrit (r = -0.5), which was also significantly correlated with RBP/vitamin A ratio (r = 0.61). Immunoreactive parathyroid hormone (i-PTH) and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) were inversely related to RBP/vitamin A and RBP/PA ratios. These findings suggest that a raised plasma vitamin A level in regular dialysis patients contributes to anemia and hypervitaminosis A toxicity.