Acute kidney injury in paediatric intensive care: need for extended vigil

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is an important contributor towards morbidity and mortality among critically ill children. The objective of this study was to ascertain the etiological factors, categorize the severity and determine the immediate outcome of AKI among children admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of a tertiary referral hospital in south India. Methods: A prospective study was conducted from January to December 2012 in the PICU, Government medical college, kozhikode, a major referral hospital in north Kerala. The institutional ethics committee approved the study. Children in the age group of 1 month to 12 years admitted to the PICU for at least 48 hours were included if they had no previous renal disease/AKI at the time of admission. Serum creatinine levels of the children were measured at the time of admission, at 48 hours, and one month later. Outcome measures included normalization of serum creatinine or persistence of impaired renal function. Mortality was assessed both immediately and after one month. Results: A total of 1716 children were included in the study, of which 107 children developed AKI (6.2%). Among the 107 children, 56 children (52.3%) were boys. Majority of children were infants 75(70.1%). Infection was the commonest underlying condition   associated with AKI. Most of the children with acute kidney injury were in the earliest phase (Stage 1). Twenty-six children (24.29%) died. Among the survivors, 10% were found to have impaired renal function when followed up a month later. Conclusions: There is a high incidence of AKI in critically ill infants admitted in PICU. Residual renal impairment can persist even after discharge from hospital and these children need follow up for a longer time.