Abstract: Objective  To investigate the correlation between renal anemia and serum β2-microglobulin (β2-MG) levels in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients, and to provide a new viewpoint and basis for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of renal anemia. Methods  MHD patients diagnosed with end-stage renal disease and in stable condition at the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from December 2021 to December 2023 were selected for the study, and were divided into the anemia group and the control group according to their hemoglobin levels, and the relevant clinical data and laboratory examination data of the patients were collected. The data were analyzed statistically via SPSS 22.0 software. Results  Compared with the control group, serum β2-MG was significantly higher in the anemia group, and the patients' hemoglobin was positively correlated with leukocytes, total protein, and albumin (P＜0.05), and negatively correlated with high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and β2-MG (P＜0.05); multifactorial Logistic regression showed that low blood albumin and high level of β2-MG were the independent risk factors for the development of anemia in MHD patients. Conclusions  Elevated serum β2-MG levels in MHD patients were associated with decreased hemoglobin, and low blood albumin and high serum β2-MG were risk factors for renal anemia in patients. Therefore, when treating renal anemia in MHD patients, special attention needs to be paid to the patients' nutritional status and the clearance of large molecule inflammatory toxins such as β2-MG; correcting malnutrition and via β2-MG adsorbent columns first, if necessary, may be more favorable for correcting renal anemia, thus further reducing the incidence of cardiovascular complications and improving the prognosis of MHD patients.

Key words: maintenance hemodialysis, renal anemia, β2-microglobulin, inflammation