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Background: In patients with acute heart failure (AHF), the development of worsening renal function with appropriate decongestion is thought to be a benign functional change and not associated with poor prognosis. We investigated whether the benefit of decongestion outweighs the risk of concurrent kidney tubular damage and leads to better outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from the AKINESIS study, which enrolled AHF patients requiring intravenous diuretic therapy. Urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) were serially measured during the hospitalization. Decongestion was defined as ≥30% BNP decrease at discharge compared to admission. Univariable and multivariable Cox models were assessed for one-year mortality. Results: Among 736 patients, 53% had ≥30% BNP decrease at discharge. Levels of uNGAL and BNP at each collection time point had positive but weak correlations (r ≤ 0.133). Patients without decongestion and with higher discharge uNGAL values had worse one-year mortality, while those with decongestion had better outcomes regardless of uNGAL values (p for interaction 0.018). This interaction was also significant when the change in BNP was analyzed as a continuous variable (p < 0.001). Although higher peak and discharge uNGAL were associated with mortality in univariable analysis, only ≥30% BNP decrease was a significant predictor after multivariable adjustment. Conclusions: Among AHF patients treated with diuretic therapy, decongestion was generally not associated with kidney tubular damage assessed by uNGAL. Kidney tubular damage with adequate decongestion does not impact outcomes; however, kidney injury without adequate decongestion is associated with a worse prognosis. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.

BACKGROUND: Multiple different pathophysiologic processes can contribute to worsening renal function (WRF) in acute heart failure (AHF). METHODS AND RESULTS: We retrospectively analyzed 787 AHF patients for the relationship between changes in serum creatinine and biomarkers including brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), high sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hscTnI), galectin 3, serum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and urine NGAL. WRF was defined as an increase of = 0.3 mg/dl or 50% in creatinine within first 5 days of hospitalization. WRF was observed in 25% of patients. Changes in biomarkers and creatinine were poorly correlated (r = 0.21) and no biomarker predicted WRF better than creatinine. In the multivariable Cox analysis, BNP and hscTnI, but not WRF, were significantly associated with the one-year composite of death or HF hospitalization. WRF with an increasing urine NGAL predicted an increased risk of HF hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Biomarkers were not able to predict WRF better than creatinine. One-year outcomes were associated with biomarkers of cardiac stress and injury but not with WRF, while a kidney injury biomarker may prognosticate WRF for HF hospitalization.

Prompt treatment may mitigate the adverse effects of congestion in the early phase of heart failure (HF) hospitalization, which may lead to improved outcomes. We analyzed 814 acute HF patients for the relationships between time to first intravenous loop diuretics, changes in biomarkers of congestion and multiorgan dysfunction, and 1-year composite end point of death or HF hospitalization. B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), high sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hscTnI), urine and serum neutrophil gelatinase–associated lipocalin, and galectin 3 were measured at hospital admission, hospital day 1, 2, 3 and discharge. Time to diuretics was not correlated with the timing of decongestion defined as BNP decrease ≥ 30% compared with admission. Earlier BNP decreases but not time to diuretics were associated with earlier and greater decreases in hscTnI and urine neutrophil gelatinase–associated lipocalin, and lower incidence of the composite end point. After adjustment for confounders, only no BNP decrease at discharge was significantly associated with mortality but not the composite end point (p = 0.006 and p = 0.062, respectively). In conclusion, earlier time to decongestion but not the time to diuretics was associated with better biomarker trajectories. Residual congestion at discharge rather than the timing of decongestion predicted a worse prognosis. © 2021 The Authors

Aims: Improving renal function (IRF) is paradoxically associated with worse outcomes in acute heart failure (AHF), but outcomes may differ based on response to decongestion. We explored if the relationship of IRF with mortality in hospitalized AHF patients differs based on successful decongestion. Methods and results: We evaluated 760 AHF patients from AKINESIS for the relationship between IRF, change in B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), and 1-year mortality. IRF was defined as a ≥20% increase in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) relative to admission. Adequate decongestion was defined as a ≥40% decrease in last measured BNP relative to admission. IRF occurred in 22% of patients who had a mean age of 69 years, 58% were men, 72% were white, and median admission eGFR was 49 mL/min/1.73 m2. IRF patients had more severe heart failure reflected by lower admission eGFR, higher blood urea nitrogen, lower systolic blood pressure, lower sodium, and higher use of inotropes. IRF patients had higher 1-year mortality (25%) than non-IRF patients (15%) (P < 0.01). However, this relationship differed by BNP trajectory (P-interaction = 0.03). When stratified by BNP change, non-IRF patients and IRF patients with decreasing BNP had lower 1-year mortality than either non-IRF and IRF patients without decreasing BNP. However, in multivariate analysis, IRF was not associated with mortality [adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 1.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.7–1.5] while BNP was (adjusted HR 0.5, 95% CI 0.3–0.7). When IRF was evaluated as transiently occurring or persisting at discharge, again only BNP change was significantly associated with mortality. Conclusion: Improving renal function is associated with mortality in AHF but not independent of other variables and congestion status. Achieving adequate decongestion, as reflected by lower BNP, in AHF is more strongly associated with mortality than IRF. © 2021 European Society of Cardiology.

Aims: Kidney impairment has been associated with worse outcomes in acute heart failure (AHF), although recent studies challenge this association. Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is a novel biomarker of kidney tubular injury. Its prognostic role in AHF has not been evaluated in large cohorts. The present study aimed to determine if serum NGAL (sNGAL) or urine NGAL (uNGAL) is superior to creatinine for predicting short-term outcomes in AHF. Methods and results: The study was conducted in an international, multicentre, prospective cohort consisting of 927 patients with AHF. Admission and peak values of sNGAL, uNGAL and uNGAL/urine creatinine (uCr) ratio were compared to admission and peak serum creatinine (sCr). The composite endpoints were death, initiation of renal replacement therapy, heart failure (HF) readmission and any emergent HF-related outpatient visit within 30 and 60 days, respectively. The mean age of the cohort was 69 years and 62% were male. The median length of stay was 6 days. The composite endpoint occurred in 106 patients and 154 patients within 30 and 60 days, respectively. Serum NGAL was more predictive than uNGAL and the uNGAL/uCr ratio but was not superior to sCr [area under the curve: admission sNGAL 0.61, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.55–0.67, and 0.59, 95% CI 0.54–0.65; peak sNGAL: 0.60, 95% CI 0.54–0.66, and 0.57, 95% CI 0.52–0.63; admission sCr: 0.60, 95% CI 0.54–0.64, and 0.59, 95% CI 0.53–0.64; peak sCr: 0.61, 95% CI 0.55–0.67, and 0.59, 95% CI 0.54–0.64, at 30 and 60 days, respectively]. NGAL was not predictive of the composite endpoint in multivariate analysis. Conclusions: Serum NGAL outperformed uNGAL but neither was superior to admission or peak sCr for predicting adverse events. © 2019 The Authors. European Journal of Heart Failure © 2019 European Society of Cardiology

Background: Worsening renal function (WRF) during acute heart failure (AHF) occurs frequently and has been associated with adverse outcomes, though this association has been questioned. WRF is now evaluated by function and injury. We evaluated whether urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) is superior to creatinine for prediction and prognosis of WRF in patients with AHF. Methods and Results: We performed a multicenter, international, prospective cohort of patients with AHF requiring IV diuretics. The primary outcome was whether uNGAL predicted development of WRF, defined as a sustained increase in creatinine of 0.5 mg/dL or ≥50% above first value or initiation of renal replacement therapy, within the first 5 days. The main secondary outcome was a composite of in-hospital adverse events. We enrolled 927 patients (mean 68.5 years of age, 62% men). The primary outcome occurred in 72 patients (7.8%). The first, peak and the ratio of uNGAL to urine creatinine (area under curves (AUC) ≤ 0.613) did not have diagnostic utility over the first creatinine (AUC 0.662). There were 235 adverse events in 144 patients. uNGAL did not predict (AUCs ≤ 0.647) adverse clinical events better than creatinine (AUC 0.695). Conclusions: uNGAL was not superior to creatinine for predicting WRF or adverse in-hospital outcomes and cannot be recommended for WRF in AHF. © 2019 Elsevier Inc.

Aims: In acute heart failure (AHF), relationships between changes in B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and worsening renal function (WRF) and its prognostic implications have not been fully determined. We investigated the relationship between WRF and a decrease in BNP with in-hospital and 1-year mortality in AHF. Methods and results: The Acute Kidney Injury NGAL Evaluation of Symptomatic heart faIlure Study (AKINESIS) was a prospective, international, multicentre study of AHF patients. Severe WRF (sWRF) was a sustained increase of ≥44.2 μmol/L (0.5 mg/dL) or ≥50% in creatinine, non-severe WRF (nsWRF) was a non-sustained increase of ≥26.5 μmol/L (0.3 mg/dL) or ≥50% in creatinine, and WRF with clinical deterioration was nsWRF with renal replacement therapy, inotrope use, or mechanical ventilation. Decreased BNP was defined as a ≥30% reduction in the last measured BNP compared to admission BNP. Among 814 patients, the incidence of WRF was not different between patients with or without decreased BNP (nsWRF: 33% vs. 31%, P = 0.549; sWRF: 11% vs. 9%, P = 0.551; WRF with clinical deterioration: 8% vs. 10%, P = 0.425). Decreased BNP was associated with better in-hospital and 1-year mortality regardless of WRF, while WRF was associated with worse outcomes only in patients without decreased BNP. In multivariate Cox regression analysis, decreased BNP, sWRF, and WRF with clinical deterioration were significantly associated with 1-year mortality. Conclusions: Decreased BNP was associated with better in-hospital and long-term outcomes. WRF was only associated with adverse outcomes in patients without decreased BNP. © 2019 The Authors. European Journal of Heart Failure © 2019 European Society of Cardiology