Prevalence and Significance of Unrecognized Renal Dysfunction in Patients with Stroke.

Background: Unrecognized renal dysfunction, defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m(2) in the presence of normal serum creatinine levels, is a common comorbidity among patients with various cardiovascular conditions. The current study was aimed to evaluate the prevalence and clinical significance of unrecognized renal dysfunction in patients with acute stroke.
Methods: The cohort consisted of patients with acute stroke included in the prospective National Acute Stroke ISraeli (NASIS) registry. Unrecognized renal insufficiency was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 mL/min/1.73 m(2) in the presence of serum creatinine ≤1.2 mg/dL. The 2 primary outcomes were in-hospital mortality and the composite of in-hospital mortality or severe disability at hospital discharge.
Results: Of the 7900 patients with stroke included in the study, 5571 (70.5%) had normal renal function, 1510 (19.1%) had recognized renal insufficiency, and 819 (10.4%) had unrecognized renal insufficiency. Mortality rates were higher in patients with recognized and unrecognized renal insufficiency compared with patients with normal renal function (9.9%, 9.1%, and 4.4%, respectively, P < .0001). Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for in-hospital mortality were higher for patients with renal dysfunction recognized (OR, 2.1; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.6-2.7; P < .001) or unrecognized (OR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.2; P = .006) compared with patients with normal renal function. Likewise, adjusted ORs for the composite of in-hospital mortality or severe disability at hospital discharge were higher for patients with renal dysfunction recognized (OR, 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1-1.5; P = .004) or unrecognized (OR, 1.2; 95% CI, 1.01-1.5; P = .04).
Conclusions: Unrecognized renal insufficiency is common among patients with acute stroke and is associated with adverse short-term outcomes.
(Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)