Role of Hepcidin in Anemia of Chronic Disease
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Published in Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026) of Research Edge International Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies.
Research Edge International Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies is a peer-reviewed international journal dedicated to publishing high-quality research articles across diverse academic disciplines including science, medicine, engineering, social sciences, and humanities. The journal aims to promote interdisciplinary research and academic excellence.
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Anemia of Chronic Disease (ACD), also known as anemia of inflammation, is the second most common cause of anemia worldwide and is commonly observed in patients with chronic infections, autoimmune disorders, malignancies, and chronic kidney disease. Unlike Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA), ACD is characterized by adequate iron stores but impaired iron utilization. Hepcidin, a hepatic peptide hormone, plays a central role in systemic iron regulation and is considered a key factor in the pathogenesis of ACD. The present hospital-based analytical case control study included 150 participants divided into three groups: 50 patients with ACD, 50 with IDA, and 50 healthy controls. All participants underwent complete blood count, serum iron profile, serum ferritin, C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and serum hepcidin estimation using the sandwich nitrocellulose membrane technique. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 25.0. Group comparisons were carried out using ANOVA and independent t-tests, correlations were assessed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and diagnostic accuracy was evaluated through Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. The results showed that mean serum hepcidin levels were significantly higher in the ACD group (62.4 ± 15.8 ng/mL) compared to the IDA group (8.9 ± 4.2 ng/mL) and healthy controls (21.6 ± 7.4 ng/mL), with p < 0.001. A strong positive correlation was observed between serum hepcidin and ferritin (r = 0.72, p < 0.001) as well as CRP (r = 0.69, p < 0.001), while a significant negative correlation was found between serum hepcidin and hemoglobin levels (r = −0.58, p < 0.001). ROC curve analysis demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance of serum hepcidin in differentiating ACD from IDA, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.94, sensitivity of 92%, and specificity of 88% at a cut-off value of 32 ng/mL. The findings confirm that elevated serum hepcidin plays a crucial role in the development of ACD through inflammation-driven iron sequestration and impaired erythropoiesis. Serum hepcidin shows high diagnostic accuracy in distinguishing ACD from IDA and may serve as a valuable clinical biomarker, although larger studies are needed to establish standardized reference ranges and explore therapeutic strategies targeting hepcidin modulation.
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