Background
- Majority of cases of community-acquired ARF is secondary to volume depletion although consideration of pre-renal, post renal, and renal causes are important.
AKI Staging
| AKI Stage[1]
|
KDIGO
|
UOP
|
| 1 |
Cr 1.5-1.9x baseline over 7d or ≥0.3 mg/dL increase over 48hrs |
<0.5 mL/kg/hr for 6-12hrs
|
| 2 |
Cr 2.0-2.9x baseline |
<0.5 mL/kg/hr for >12hrs
|
| 3 |
Cr ≥3.0x baseline or ≥4.0 mg/dL increase or initiation of RRT |
<0.3 mL/kg/hr for >24hrs or anuria for >12hrs
|
Chronic Kidney Disease Stages
- Useful if patient's baseline creatinine is unknown
- Stage 1: Kidney damage (e.g. proteinuria) and normal GFR; GFR >90
- Stage 2: Kidney damage (e.g. proteinuria) and mild decrease in GFR; GFR 60-89
- Stage 3: Moderate decrease in GFR; GFR >30-59
- Stage 4: Severe decrease in GFR; GFR 15-29
- Stage 5: Kidney failure (dialysis or kidney transplant needed); GFR <15
Risk Factors
Clinical Features
- Acute renal failure itself has few symptoms until severe uremia develops:
- Patients more likely to present with symptoms related to underlying cause:
- Prerenal
- Thirst, orthostatic lightheadedness, decreasing urine output
- Intrinsic
- Postrenal
- Alternating oliguria and polyuria is pathognomonic of obstruction
- Anuria
Etiologies
Prerenal
Intrinsic
Postrenal
- Infants and children
- Urethra and bladder outlet
- Anatomic malformations
- Urethral atresia
- Meatal stenosis
- Anterior and posterior urethral valves
- Ureter
- Anatomic malformations
- Vesicoureteral reflux (female preponderance)
- Ureterovesical junction obstruction
- Ureterocele
- Retroperitoneal tumor
- All ages
- Various locations in GU tract
- Urethra and bladder outlet
- Phimosis or urethral stricture (male preponderance)
- Neurogenic bladder
- Adults
- Urethra and bladder outlet
- BPH
- Cancer of prostate, bladder, cervix, or colon
- Obstructed catheters
- Ureter
- Ureteral calculi, uric acid crystals
- Papillary necrosis
- Tumor: Ureter, uterus, prostate, bladder, colon, rectum; retroperitoneal lymphoma
- Retroperitoneal fibrosis: idiopathic, tuberculosis, sarcoidosis, propranolol
- Stricture: TB, radiation, schistosomiasis, NSAIDs
- Miscellaneous
Evaluation
Work-up
- Urine
- Prostate exam
- Urinalysis, urine sodium, urine creatinine, urine urea
- ECG (hyperkalemia)
- Chronic renal failure features
- Anemia, thrombocytopenia
- Iron studies with low Fe, low TIBC, low iron saturation, normal ferritin
- Secondary rise in PTH, high phos, low calcium
Imaging
- CXR
- Evidence of volume overload, pneumonia
- US: renal/bladder
- Test of choice in setting of acute renal failure
- Bladder size (post-void)
- Hydronephrosis
- IVC collapsibility (prerenal)
- CT
- Useful to determine cause of post renal failure (identification of abdominal masses etc.)
- Should generally not be used with IV contrast due to potential risk for CIN
- Indicated if hydronephrosis found on ultrasound in order to define the location of obstruction
Diagnosis
| Finding
|
Prerenal
|
Intrinsic
|
Postrenal
|
| BUN/creatinine ratio |
>20 |
< 12 |
12-20 (normal range)
|
| FeNa^ |
|
|
|
| Urine osm |
>500 |
<350 |
|
| Urine sodium |
< 20 mEq/L |
> 40 mEq/L |
|
| Specific gravity |
> 1.020 |
< 1.020 |
|
| Fractional excretion of urea |
< 35% |
> 50% |
|
| Microscopic analysis |
|
- Acute glomerulonephritis: RBCs, casts
- Acute tubular necrosis: protein, tubular epithelial cells
- Interstitial nephritis: eosinophils
|
|
^ (urine sodium/plasma sodium) / (urine creatinine / serum creatinine)
Management
Treat underlying cause
- Prerenal: IVF (or pRBCs if bleeding)
- Intrinsic: Depends on cause
- Obstruction:
- Note: Postobstructive diuresis can result in significant volume loss and death
- Typically occurs when obstruction has been prolonged / has resulted in renal failure
- Admit patients with persistent diuresis of >250 mL/h for >2hr
- Foley Catheter, consider Coude Catheter
- Suprapubic (if Coude fails)
- Possible last ditch effort to tide patient over to formal dialysis if hours away
- If traditional pulmonary edema treatments are not working for SCAPE patient, one may attempt to remove 200-300 cc of blood as a bridge to dialysis[2]
- If Hb too low, may consider temporary venous tourniquets on each leg proximally q30 min to reduce preload volume to the heart, alternating legs
Disposition
See Also
Calculators
Fractional Excretion of Sodium (FENa)
FENa — Fractional Excretion of Sodium
| Parameter
|
Value
|
| Serum Sodium (mEq/L)
|
|
| Serum Creatinine (mg/dL)
|
|
| Urine Sodium (mEq/L)
|
|
| Urine Creatinine (mg/dL)
|
|
| FENa (%)
|
%
|
| Interpretation (in setting of oliguria/AKI)
|
| <1%
|
Pre-renal azotemia — Kidneys are sodium-avid (hypoperfusion, hypovolemia, heart failure, cirrhosis). Consider volume resuscitation.
|
| >2%
|
Intrinsic renal disease — ATN, AIN, or glomerulonephritis. Kidneys unable to concentrate urine.
|
| 1–2%
|
Indeterminate — May be seen in early ATN or with mixed etiologies. Clinical correlation required.
|
| Important Caveats
|
- FENa is unreliable on diuretics — use FEUrea instead
- Low FENa (<1%) can be seen in contrast nephropathy, rhabdomyolysis, early obstruction
- Not validated in CKD patients
|
| References
|
- Espinel CH. The FENa test: use in the differential diagnosis of acute renal failure. JAMA. 1976;236:579-581. PMID 947239.
- Steiner RW. Interpreting the fractional excretion of sodium. Am J Med. 1984;77:699-702. PMID 6486145.
|
Creatinine Clearance (Cockcroft-Gault)
Creatinine Clearance (Cockcroft-Gault)
| Parameter
|
Value
|
| Age (years)
|
|
| Sex
|
1 Male Female
|
| Weight (kg)
|
|
| Serum Creatinine (mg/dL)
|
|
| CrCl (mL/min)
|
mL/min
|
| Interpretation
|
| >90
|
Normal renal function.
|
| 60–89
|
Mildly decreased (CKD Stage 2).
|
| 30–59
|
Moderately decreased (CKD Stage 3). Adjust renally-dosed medications.
|
| 15–29
|
Severely decreased (CKD Stage 4).
|
| <15
|
Kidney failure (CKD Stage 5). Consider dialysis.
|
| References
|
- Cockcroft DW, Gault MH. Prediction of creatinine clearance from serum creatinine. Nephron. 1976;16(1):31-41. PMID 1244564.
- Formula: CrCl = [(140 − age) × weight (kg)] / [72 × serum Cr (mg/dL)] × 0.85 if female.
- Note: Use IBW or adjusted BW in obese patients. Not validated in AKI or rapidly changing creatinine.
|
Schwartz Equation (Pediatric GFR)
Schwartz Equation — Pediatric eGFR
| Parameter
|
Value
|
| Height (cm)
|
|
| Serum Creatinine (mg/dL)
|
|
| Estimated GFR
|
mL/min/1.73m²
|
| References
|
- Schwartz GJ, Muñoz A, Schneider MF, et al. New equations to estimate GFR in children with CKD. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2009;20(3):629-637. PMID 19158356.
- Bedside Schwartz (2009): eGFR = 0.413 × height (cm) / serum creatinine (mg/dL). Valid for ages 1-16 years.
|
External Links
References
- ↑ Moore PK, et. al. Management of acute kidney injury: core curriculum 2018. Am J Kidney Dis. 2018; 72: 136-148.
- ↑ Eiser AR et al. Phlebotomy for pulmonary edema in dialysis patients. Clin Nephrol. 1997 Jan;47(1):47-9.