Acute kidney injury

Acute kidney injury (AKI) in the Irish health system; Incidence, severity and clinical consequences

Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), previously called acute renal failure, occurs when kidney function deteriorates rapidly over hours or days and elevated levels of waste products accumulate in the blood. AKI is most common in people who are hospitalized, particularly in critically ill people who need intensive care. AKI may occur in multiple settings and may vary in its severity and duration. It is increasingly recognised that a diagnosis of AKI may in the long-term lead to a higher risk of kidney failure or death. However, there are several things that we dont fully understand about AKI.

• How frequent is a diagnosis of AKI the Irish health system?

• And what is the profile of patients who are at greatest risk of developing AKI?

• Does the severity or the frequency of AKI events predict worse outcomes for patients?

• What are the patterns of recovery following AKI and are these associated with bad outcomes?

• Is there variation in care following AKI events and does this lead to differences in long-term outcomes?

  Our goal is to improve our understanding of AKI by creating a large registry of patients from within the Irish Health System. By linking patient information from laboratory databases with systems that track hospitalisations and mortality, we aim to provide an enabling research framework to answer the research questions above. In preparation, we have assembled a team of investigators from the University of Limerick and University College Dublin with expertise in kidney disease, epidemiology, statistics, and information systems.

This novel approach will provide a cost-effective solution for describing the natural history of AKI and its clinical consequences. Better understanding of this complex illness will help inform national policy on prevention efforts and management practices