Incidence and outcomes of acute kidney injury in intensive care units: a Veterans Administration study.
OBJECTIVE
: To examine the effect of severity of acute kidney injury or renal recovery on risk-adjusted mortality across different intensive care unit settings. Acute kidney injury in intensive care unit patients is associated with significant mortality.


METHODS
: Retrospective observational study.


METHODS
: There were 325,395 of 617,927 consecutive admissions to all 191 Veterans Affairs ICUs across the country.


METHODS
: Large national cohort of patients admitted to Veterans Affairs ICUs and who developed acute kidney injury during their intensive care unit stay.


RESULTS
: Outcome measures were hospital mortality, and length of stay. Acute kidney injury was defined as a 0.3-mg/dL increase in creatinine relative to intensive care unit admission and categorized into Stage I (0.3 mg/dL to <2 times increase), Stage II (> or =2 and <3 times increase), and Stage III (> or =3 times increase or dialysis requirement). Association of mortality and length of stay with acute kidney injury stages and renal recovery was examined. Overall, 22% (n = 71,486) of patients developed acute kidney injury (Stage I: 17.5%; Stage II: 2.4%; Stage III: 2%); 16.3% patients met acute kidney injury criteria within 48 hrs, with an additional 5.7% after 48 hrs of intensive care unit admission. Acute kidney injury frequency varied between 9% and 30% across intensive care unit admission diagnoses. After adjusting for severity of illness in a model that included urea and creatinine on admission, odds of death increased with increasing severity of acute kidney injury. Stage I odds ratio = 2.2 (95% confidence interval, 2.17-2.30); Stage II odds ratio = 6.1 (95% confidence interval, 5.74, 6.44); and Stage III odds ratio = 8.6 (95% confidence interval, 8.07-9.15). Acute kidney injury patients with sustained elevation of creatinine experienced higher mortality risk than those who recovered.


METHODS
: None.


CONCLUSIONS
: Admission diagnosis and severity of illness influence frequency and severity of acute kidney injury. Small elevations in creatinine in the intensive care unit are associated with increased risk-adjusted mortality across all intensive care unit settings, whereas renal recovery was associated with a protective effect. Strategies to prevent even mild acute kidney injury or promote renal recovery may improve survival.
Thakar
Charuhas V
CV
Nephrology, Cincinnati VA Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA. charuhas.thakar@va.gov
Christianson
Annette
A
Freyberg
Ron
R
Almenoff
Peter
P
Render
Marta L
ML
D058186:Acute Kidney Injury / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs