Summary Background and objectives Peritoneal dialysis is still used for AKI in developing countries despite concerns about its limitations. The objective of this study was to explore the role of high-volume peritoneal dialysis in AKI patients in relation to metabolic and fluid control, outcome, and risk factors associated with death. Design, setting, participants, & measurements A prospective study was performed on 204 AKI patients who were assigned to high-volume peritoneal dialysis (prescribed Kt/V=0.60/session) by flexible catheter and cycler; 150 patients (80.2%) were included in the final analysis. Results Mean age was 63.8±15.8 years, 70% of patients were in the intensive care unit, and sepsis was the main etiology of AKI (54.7%). BUN and creatinine levels stabilized after four sessions at around 50 and 4 mg/dl, respectively. Fluid removal and nitrogen balance increased progressively and stabilized around 1200 ml and −1 g/d after four sessions, respectively. Weekly delivered Kt/V was 3.5±0.68. Regarding AKI outcome, 23% of patients presented renal function recovery, 6.6% of patients remained on dialysis after 30 days, and 57.3% of patients died. Age and sepsis were identified as risk factors for death. In urine output, increase of 1 g in nitrogen balance and increase of 500 ml in ultrafiltration after three sessions were identified as protective factors. Conclusions High-volume peritoneal dialysis is effective for a selected AKI patient group, allowing adequate metabolic and fluid control. Age, sepsis, and urine output as well as nitrogen balance and ultrafiltration after three high-volume peritoneal dialysis sessions were associated significantly with death.

Despite faster metabolic control and higher dialysis dose and ultrafiltration with EHD, this study provides no evidence of a survival benefit of EHD compared with HVPD. The limitations of this study were that the results were not presented according to the intention to treat and it did not control other supportive management strategies as nutrition support and timing of dialysis initiation that might influence outcomes in AKI.

OBJECTIVE:The objective of this study was to perform a nutritional assessment of acute kidney injury patients and to identify the relationship between nutritional markers and outcomes.METHOD:This was a prospective and observational study. Patients who were hospitalized at the Hospital of Botucatu School of Medicine were evaluated between January 2009 and December 2011. We evaluated a total of 133 patients with a clinical diagnosis of acute kidney injury and a clinical presentation suggestive of acute tubular necrosis. We explored the associations between clinical, laboratory and nutritional markers and in-hospital mortality. Multivariable logistic regression was used to adjust for confounding and selection bias.RESULTS:Non-survivor patients were older (67±14 vs. 59±16 years) and exhibited a higher prevalence of sepsis (57.1 vs. 21.4%) and higher Acute Tubular Necrosis-Individual Severity Scores (0.60±0.22 vs. 0.41±0.21) than did survivor patients. Based on the multivariable analysis, laboratorial parameters such as blood urea nitrogen and C-reactive protein were associated with a higher risk of death (OR: 1.013, p = 0.0052; OR: 1.050, p = 0.01, respectively), and nutritional parameters such as low calorie intake, higher levels of edema, lower resistance based on bioelectrical impedance analysis and a more negative nitrogen balance were significantly associated with a higher risk of death (OR: 0.950, p = 0.01; OR: 1.138, p = 0.03; OR: 0.995, p = 0.03; OR: 0.934, p = 0.04, respectively).CONCLUSIONS:In acute kidney injury patients, a nutritional assessment seems to identify nutritional markers that are associated with outcome. In this study, a low caloric intake, higher C-reactive protein levels, the presence of edema, a lower resistance measured during a bioelectrical impedance analysis and a lower nitrogen balance were significantly associated with risk of death in acute kidney injury patients.

Nutritional assessment is an indispensable tool for the evaluation and clinical monitoring of patients with acute kidney injury (AKI). Acute loss of renal function interferes with the metabolism of all macronutrients, responsible for proinflammatory, pro-oxidative and hypercatabolic situations. The major nutritional disorders in AKI patients are hypercatabolism, hyperglycemia, and hypertriglyceridemia. Those added to the contributions of the underlying disease, complications, and the need for renal replacement therapy can interfere in the nutritional depletion of those patients. Malnutrition in AKI patients is associated with increased incidence of complications, longer hospitalization, and higher hospital mortality. However, there are few studies evaluating the nutritional status of AKI patients. Anthropometric parameters, such as body mass index, arm circumference, and thickness of skin folds, are difficult to interpret due to changes in hydration status in those patients. Biochemical parameters commonly used in clinical practice are also influenced by non-nutritional factors like loss of liver function and inflammatory status. Although there are no prospective data about the behavior of nutritional markers, some authors demonstrated associations of some parameters with clinical outcomes. The use of markers like albumin, cholesterol, prealbumin, IGF-1, subjective global assessment, and calculation of the nitrogen balance seem to be useful as screening parameters for worse prognosis and higher mortality in AKI patients. In patients with AKI on renal replacement therapy, a caloric intake of 25 to 30 kcal/kg and a minimum amount of 1.5 g/kg/day of protein is recommended to minimize protein catabolism and prevent metabolic complications.