Continuous renal replacement therapy for critically ill patients in the intensive care units of two tertiary hospitals. v1

Introduction: Acute kidney injury is characterized by a sudden decrease in renal function. The objective was to determine the variables that are associated with the need for continuous renal replacement therapy and its outcome in critically ill patients treated in two intensive care units. Methods. A cohort follow-up study with reviewed clinical histories of 140 patients admitted between January-2012 and July-2015, who were receiving continuous therapy, and the main outcome was survival after discharge. Clinical variables, severity scores, disease prognosis, continuous renal replacement techniques and outcomes were collected. Results. Mean age was 61.9±17.6 years, and 60.7% were men. Septic shock was the main cause of acute kidney injury. In total, 79.4% of cases died in the intensive care units. The median dose of continuous renal replacement therapy was 28 ml/kg/hour (interquartile range: 35-37). The late initiation of the therapy between 25-72 hours after the diagnosis increased the probability that the patient would experience a fatal outcome (OR:6.9, 95%CI:1.5-33.0). Conclusions: Acute kidney injury secondary to sepsis is a frequent condition in critically ill patients and is associated with high mortality rates. In these cases, continuous renal replacement therapy was the main recourse for its treatment.