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Background: Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) represents an important cause of hospital-acquired AKI. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of CI-AKI after coronary angiography (CA) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and the role of patient-/procedure-related risk factors., Methods: For 11 months, patients undergoing CA or PCI were prospectively evaluated for CI-AKI, and factors possibly affecting CI-AKI were analyzed. Statistical analysis was completed using Student's t-test, chi-square or Fisher exact test, and multivariate logistic regression., Results: Among 585 consecutive patients, incidence of CI-AKI was 5.1% (n=30) and renal replacement therapy was required in 10% of those (n=3). Incidence of CI-AKI was higher in patients with anemia or chronic kidney disease (CKD) associated with diabetes. Basal hemoglobin was significantly lower in CI-AKI patients while Mehran score, contrast medium (CM) volume, contrast ratio (CM volume / maximum contrast dose) and ratio glomerular filtration rate (CM volume / GFR) were significantly higher. Multivariate analysis selected a higher contrast ratio as a factor independently associated with a higher risk of CI-AKI which otherwise appeared to be lower with increasing basal hemoglobin., Conclusions: The incidence of CI-AKI after CA or PCI was higher in patients with CKD associated with diabetes. Lower levels of basal hemoglobin appeared to be related to a higher risk of CI-AKI, and contrast media volume, especially if exceeding the dose adjusted for renal function, was a strong modifiable risk factor for CI-AKI.

In the last 10-15 years, user-friendly continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) machines have played a major role in increasing the popularity of these techniques in intensive care settings. At present it is not clear which modality of renal replacement therapy (RRT) is optimal for critically ill patients with acute kidney injury (AKI). The choice between different modalities should therefore not be based on unproven ''outcome'' advantages but on evaluation of the clinical picture and logistical circumstances. In hypercatabolic patients, CRRT and sustained low-efficiency dialysis (SLED) have been shown to provide similar metabolic control, but uncontrolled studies suggested a better hemodynamic stability during CRRT, intended as a higher mean arterial pressure and/or less frequent need to increase inotropic or vasoactive drugs. The incidence of hemorrhagic complications is higher with CRRT; however, in particular conditions, such as in patients at high risk of bleeding, CRRT can be performed without anticoagulation or with the use of alternative anticoagulation protocols. Among the different modalities, regional anticoagulation with citrate appears to be the most promising, and the continuous development of simplified protocols for citrate CRRT might facilitate the more extensive use of this technique in the near future. The presence of a mismatch between prescribed and delivered dialysis dose is frequently reported as an important drawback of CRRT. However, data from a recent study designed to evaluate the prognostic impact of the intensity of renal support in critically ill patients with AKI showed that the target Kt/V was obtained in only 67-69% of intermittent hemodialysis (IHD) sessions. Data from several studies comparing the costs of different RRT modalities showed that CRRT is more expensive than IHD or SLED. However, the costs related to SLED can fluctuate within a wide range and in particular settings the higher costs of CRRT could be partially justified by logistical advantages. Further improvements in CRRT device characteristics, anticoagulation protocols, and adaptation of dialysis/replacement fluids to clinical needs will possibly contribute to maintaining, in the coming years, the key role of CRRT in the treatment of hemodynamically unstable critically ill patients requiring RRT.