Clinical profile and prognosis of patients with acute kidney injury from a tertiary care hospital in south India

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is associated with significant mortality and prognosis depends on spectrum of etiologies and management. There are regional differences in etiology and outcomes of AKI. This study was undertaken to determine clinical characteristics, etiologies of AKI, modality of treatment and prognosis of AKI in our cohort of population. Methodology: This is a retrospective observational study conducted over a period of 6 months from a tertiary care hospital. All patients above 15 years admitted with AKI are included in the study. Clinical parameters, risk factors, cause of AKI (as per KDIGO criteria) and treatment received were studied. Patients with underlying chronic kidney disease (CKD), obstructive causes, drugs and toxin mediated AKI were excluded from the study. Results: A total of 50 patients with AKI were studied in this period. The mean age of patient was 41 years with slightly predominant male patients. The common etiologies of AKI included: infections (48%), snake bite (18%), hepatorenal syndrome (18%), cardiorenal causes (10%), and rhabdomyolysis in 6%. Oliguria was most common symptom at presentation (46%) followed by fever and breathlessness. Dialysis was required in 22 patients. Dialysis was equally effective in infective and non-infective causes of AKI. Mean duration of hospital stay was 7.8±2.5 days. Two patients died during study period due to multiorgan failure. Conclusion: Infections are common cause for AKI in this study. Renal replacement therapy is equally effective in both infective and non-infective causes of AKI with favourable prognosis.