12.7.1: Acute kidney injury Flashcards
What timeframe does an acute kidney injury occur over?
Hours to days (rather than weeks to months)
True/false: ‘acute on chronic’ kidney disease is possible.
True
* This describes an acute injury suffered in addition to pre-existing chronic renal disease.
* The injury may or may not be related to the cause of pre-existing disease.
How can we subdivide acute kidney injury based on location and cause?
- Haemodynamic i.e. pre-renal azotaemia
- Intrinsic renal
- Post-renal e.g. urethral obstruction
What might cause a haemodynamic AKI?
Anything that affects renal blood flow OR causes systemic hypotension
Common causes:
* Hypovolaemia
* Anaesthesia
* Use of NSAIDs
Explain how NSAIDs could cause a haemodynamic AKI
- NSAIDs cause prostaglandin inhibition
- Prostaglandins are very important in maintaining afferent renal blood flow
- NSAID overdose may lead to haemodynamic AKI; some patients are very susceptible even at normal doses
True/false: if we address the underlying cause of a pre-renal azotaemia early enough, we might be able to resolve it.
True
* There is some suggestion that haemodynamic AKI isn’t a true AKI, it is simply reduced renal blood flow. Usually we can restore renal perfusion using IV fluids.
* If we do not correct this early enough, intrinsic renal damage occurs: there is renal ischaemia and hypoxia.
What could cause intrinsic renal AKI?
- True renal damage is most commonly ischaemic/hypoxic or toxic in nature.
- Primary renal disease and infectious causes may also be implicated
What could cause ischaemic (intrinsic renal) AKI?
- Hypovolaemia; distributive/obstructive/cardiogenic shock
- Deep prolonged anaesthesia, especially where BP is not monitored ± there has been bleeding
- Thrombosis/DIC
- Hyperviscosity/polycythaemia
- NSAIDs
Polycythaemia
Abnormally high concentration of circulating red bloods cells.
Polycythaemia vera: bone marrow neoplasm that leads to over-production of erythrocytes.
Provide examples of primary renal disease that could lead to intrinsic renal AKI
- Infectious causes: urinary tract infection/pyelonephritis; Lepto
- Immune-mediated: glomerulonephritis, SLE
- Neoplasia e.g. lymphoma
Which organisms are most commonly implicated in UTIs?
a) gram-positive cocci
b) protozoal organisms
c) gram-negatives/ E. coli
d) gram-positive rods e.g. corynebacterium
c) gram-negatives/E. coli
Provide examples of secondary disease that could lead to intrinsic renal AKI
- Infectious cause e.g. FIP, Leishmania
- Malignant hypertension - prolonged 180mmHg systolic will cause pressure damage to kidneys
- Sepsis - due to endothelial glycocalyx damage, vascular leak, and microcirculatory disruption
- Hepatorenal syndrome in cirrhosis (rare)
Provide examples of nephrotoxins that could lead to intrinsic renal AKI
- NSAIDs
- Ethylene glycol
- Lillies (cats)
- Vitamin D toxicity (in psoriasis cream, harmful if ingested)
- Aminoglycoside antibiotics
What are the 4 phases of intrinsic AKI?
- Asymptomatic - towards the end of this phase, azotaemia begins to develop + urine output drops
- Hypoxia and inflammation responses propagate renal damage, particularly in the proximal tubule and the loop of Henle (these are highly metabolically active cells)
- This phase lasts up to 3 weeks. Urine output may be increased or decreased.
- Recovery phase: can last weeks-months; only happens if the kidneys haven’t completely died. Sodium may be lost and there is severe polyuria -> this can result in hypovolaemia, causing recurrent damage through hypoxia.
What happens if backflow pressure = GFR? e.g. with a urinary obstruction
- If backflow pressure = same as pressure in glomerulus, GFR becomes 0.
- Kidneys then die.
- This is why it is important to address urinary obstructions.