Biomarkers of Acute Kidney Injury

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common problem in both the inpatient and outpatient setting and often results from drug toxicities. Traditional methods of identifying AKI, through measurement of blood urea nitrogen and serum creatinine, are problematic in that they are slow to detect decreases in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and are influenced by a variety of factors that are not related to GFR changes. The problems inherent in a creatinine-based diagnosis of AKI have impeded the development of proper therapeutics in AKI and posed problems in evaluating nephrotoxicity of drugs and other chemical exposures. In recent years, a number of new biomarkers of AKI with more favorable test characteristics than creatinine have been identified and studied in a variety of experimental and clinical settings. This review will consider the most well-established biomarkers and appraise the literature, with particular attention given to the use of biomarkers in identifying toxin-mediated AKI.