title: Urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin as an early biomarker for prediction of acute kidney injury in preterm infants.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Our aims are to determine whether the urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) can predict acute kidney injury (AKI) development in nonseptic and nonasphyxiated but critically ill preterm infants.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty preterm infants, gestational age (GA) between 28 and 34 weeks, were included in this case control study. Blood and urine samples were taken for blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, and uNGAL on postnatal (PN) days 1 and 7. uNGAL levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay. Clinical and laboratory characteristics of the AKI group were compared with the non-AKI group.
  
  
  RESULTS
  AKI was diagnosed in six infants during the first week. The median uNGAL levels were significantly higher in the preterm infants with AKI than those of the controls on PN days 1 and 7 (p = 0.006 and p = 0.023, respectively). Backward stepwise logistic regression analysis identified that 5-minute Apgar score and uNGAL levels were significantly associated with the development of AKI, even after controlling for GA, birth weight, gender, and 1-minute Apgar score in nonseptic and nonasphyxiated but critically ill preterm infants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  uNGAL can be useful as a predictive marker of AKI in nonseptic and nonasphyxiated but critically ill preterm infants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Nephrology, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Yilmaz
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tabel
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Nephrology, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elmas
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Sevcan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ipek
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatology, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karadag
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, State Hospital, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ozlem
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Elmas
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Fatma
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ozyalin
mesh_terms: D058186:Acute Kidney Injury / Q000652:urine*; D000209:Acute-Phase Proteins / Q000652:urine*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000652:urine; D016638:Critical Illness; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000652:urine*; D000071068:Lipocalin-2; D054834:Lipocalins / Q000652:urine*; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000652:urine*
chemical_list: D000209:Acute-Phase Proteins; D015415:Biomarkers; C489506:LCN2 protein, human; D000071068:Lipocalin-2; D054834:Lipocalins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins