Frequency and Consequences of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients With CKD: A Registry Study in Queensland Australia

BACKGROUND: Acute kidney injury (AKI) contributes to and complicates chronic kidney disease (CKD). We describe AKI documented in hospital encounters in patients with CKD from the CKD Queensland registry. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study during 2011 to 2016. SETTING & PARTICIPANTS: Participants had been admitted to a hospital in Queensland. PREDICTORS: AKI was identified from International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision, Australian Modification codes. OUTCOMES: All-cause mortality with or without kidney replacement therapy (KRT), start-up KRT and maintenance KRT, costs of care. ANALYTICAL APPROACH: Time to outcomes for those with versus without AKI was evaluated using Cox regression models. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare number of admissions, hospitalized days and costs by AKI status. RESULTS: Among 6,365 patients followed up for up to 5.4 years, 2,199 (35%) had 4,711 hospital encounters with an AKI diagnosis. Those with AKI were older (68 vs 64 years old), were more often men (36.7% vs 32.2%; P < 0.001), had more advanced CKD stages (stage 3b, 34%; stage 4, 35%; and stage 5, 10%), had more admissions (12 vs 5; P < 0.001), and stayed in the hospital longer (56 vs 14 days; P < 0.001) than those without AKI. Almost 90% of AKI admissions were through the emergency department. Of those with AKI, 554 (25%) subsequently died without any form of KRT and 285 (13%) started KRT, compared with 282 (6.8%) who died and 315 (7.6%) who started KRT among those without AKI; P < 0.001 for each. Adjusted for other significant factors, hazard ratios for all deaths or death without KRT were 2.95 (95% CI, 2.56-3.39; P < 0.001) and 3.02 (95% CI, 2.60-3.51; P < 0.001), respectively, in patients with AKI relative to those without AKI. The hazard ratio for all KRT was 1.40 (95% CI, 1.18-1.66; P < 0.001), and for maintenance KRT was 1.21 (95% CI, 0.98-1.48; P = 0.07). Mean total hospital cost in patients with AKI was more than triple that of patients with no AKI (A $93,042 vs A $30,778; P < 0.001). LIMITATIONS: These findings may not be generalizable to CKD populations from the general community or in other health care environments. CONCLUSIONS: AKI is associated with strikingly increased deaths, increased rates of KRT, and higher hospital costs.