Acute kidney injury: Renal disease in the ICU.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) in the ICU frequently requires costly supportive therapies, has high morbidity, and its long-term prognosis is not as good as it has been presumed so far. Consequently, AKI generates a significant burden for the healthcare system. The problem is that AKI lacks an effective treatment and the best approach relies on early secondary prevention. Therefore, to facilitate early diagnosis, a broader definition of AKI should be established, and a marker with more sensitivity and early-detection capacity than serum creatinine - the most common marker of AKI - should be identified. Fortunately, new classification systems (RIFLE, AKIN or KDIGO) have been developed to solve these problems, and the discovery of new biomarkers for kidney injury will hopefully change the way we approach renal patients. As a first step, the concept of renal failure has changed from being a "static" disease to being a "dynamic process" that requires continuous evaluation of kidney function adapted to the reality of the ICU patient.

Evaluation of the registry DIALYREG for the assessment of continuous renal replacement techniques in the critically ill patient.

Continuous renal replacement techniques (CRRT) can induce complications and monitoring is crucial to ensure patient safety. We designed a prospective multicenter observational and descriptive study using the DIALYREG registry, an online database located on a REDCap web-based platform that allows real-time data analysis. Our main objective was to identify CRRT-related complications in our intensive care units (ICUs) and implement security measures accordingly. From January 2019 to December 2020, we included 323 patients with admission diagnoses of medical illness (54%), sepsis (24%), postoperative care (20%), and trauma (2%). CRRT indications were homeostasis (42%), oliguria (26%), fluid overload (15%), and hemodynamic optimization (13%). The median initial therapy dose was 30 ml/kg/h (IQR 25-40), and dynamic adjustment was performed in 61% of the treatments. Sets were anticoagulated with heparin (40%), citrate (38%) or no anticoagulation (22%). Citrate anticoagulation had several advantages: more frequent dynamic CRRT dose adjustment (77% vs. 58% with heparin and 56% without anticoagulation, p < 0.05), longer duration of set (median of 55 h, IQR 24-72 vs. 23 h, IQR 12-48 with heparin and 12 h, IQR 12-31 without anticoagulation, p < 0.05), less clotting of the set (26% vs. 46.7% with heparin, p < 0.05), and lower incidence of hypophosphatemia (1% citrate vs. 6% with heparin and 5% without anticoagulation). It was also safe and effective in subgroup analysis of patients with liver disease or sepsis. The main global complications were hypothermia (16%), hypophosphatemia (13%) and metabolic acidosis (10%). Weaning of the therapy was achieved through early discontinuation (56%), nocturnal therapy transition (26%) and progressive SLED (18%). 52% of the patients were discharged from the hospital, while 43% died in the ICU and 5% died during hospitalization. We can conclude that the DIALYREG registry is a feasible tool for real-time control of CRRT in our ICU.

[Variability in renal dysfunction defining criteria and detection methods in intensive care units: are the international consensus criteria used for diagnosing renal dysfunction?]. / Variabilidad en los criterios de definición y métodos de detección de la disfunción renal en las unidades de cuidados intensivos ¿se aplican los consensos internacionales para el diagnóstico de la disfunción renal?

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate variability in the detection and prevention of acute kidney injury (AKI) in the intensive care unit (ICU), and application of the international recommendations in this field (Acute Dialysis Quality Initiative [ADQI] and Acute Kidney Injury Network [AKIN]). DESIGN: A prospective, observational, multicenter study. SETTING: A total of 42 ICUs in 32 hospitals (78% in third level hospitals and 70.7% general units) recruited for a study on the prevalence of AKI (COFRADE). INTERVENTIONS: Survey. VARIABLES: Aspects related to AKI detection and prevention and renal replacement therapy protocols. RESULTS: The method used for estimating glomerular filtration rate was serum creatinine in 36.6%, creatinine clearance in 41.5% and equations in 22%; none reported using cystatin-C. Only 39.1% ICUs acknowledged the use of stratification systems (13 RIFLE and 3 AKIN). A total of 48.8% ICUs had no written protocols for AKI prevention, 31.7% reported using them only for contrast nephropathy, 7.3% for nephrotoxic drugs and 12.2% for both. In contrast, 63.4% participants had written protocols for renal replacement therapy, 70.7% had implemented a training program, and 53.7% had some method for adjusting doses of drugs when on renal replacement therapy. CONCLUSIONS: We observed important variability regarding diagnostic criteria and prevention of AKI in Spanish ICUs, the application of ADQI or AKIN recommendations still being low in our units. Renal replacement therapy seems to generate more concern among our intensivists than AKI management.

[Development of a septic shock experimental model oriented at training. Application in the training of depuration techniques in the management of severe sepsis]. / Desarrollo de un modelo experimental de shock séptico orientado a la formación. Aplicación en el entrenamiento de técnicas de depuración en el manejo de la sepsis grave.

OBJECTIVE: To define a septic shock experimental model that can be used in for training in the early management of septic shock, specifically by extracorporeal depuration (ECD). DESIGN: A case-control experimental study. SETTING: Veterinary university hospital. SUBJECTS: Ten Beagle dogs (weight 12-15kg). INTERVENTIONS: Shock was induced using 1mg/kg Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) diluted in 20 mL saline infused in 10 minutes, with a subsequent follow-up at 6 hours. There was no intervention in 5 animals in order to define the natural course of the shock and 5 underwent high volume hemofiltration (HVHF, 100mL/kg/h) to define delay in response to treatment. VARIABLES: Pressures (arterial and pulmonary), hemodynamic parameters, gastric tonometry and respiratory function were recorded. RESULTS: The LPS effect was evidenced at 2 minutes of the infusion and the 10 animals showed severe shock at the end of the infusion. At 2-hours, changes between treated and non-treated animals were seen in cardiac output, systolic volume variability and mucous CO(2). Mean arterial pressure was significantly different at four hours. All non-treated subjects died during the 6-hour follow-up and all the treated animals survived for this period. Based on these results, we developed a workshop that has been used in five courses (www.ccmijesususon.com - www.crrtcordoba.com.es/), obtaining the previous results. CONCLUSIONS: Our shock model shows a predictable behavior, very short latency and a sufficiently rapid improvement in the treated animals for it to be applied in training workshops. It is useful for training in the high-volume hemofiltration (HVHF) and can be used for training in the early management of septic shock.

Early graft dysfunction after liver transplant: Comparison of different diagnostic criteria in a single-center prospective cohort.

OBJECTIVE: Comparison of different diagnostic criteria for early liver allograft dysfunction (EAD) and their capability to predict mortality. DESIGN: Single-center, prospective, cohort study. SETTINGS: ICU in a Regional Hospital with a liver transplant program since 1997. PATIENTS: 253 consecutive patients admitted to our ICU immediately after liver transplantation between 2009 and 2015. VARIABLES OF INTEREST: Differences in the incidence of EAD and its relation with ICU, Hospital and 2-year mortality depending on the definition applied using as comparator the UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) primary non-function criterion. RESULTS: The incidence of early liver allograft dysfunction according to UNOS was 13.8%, to Makowka 6.3%, to Ardite 10.7%, to Nanashima 20.6%, to Dhillon 30.8% and to MEAF 13.4%. Kappa test did not show a good correlation among these criteria. EAD was related with ICU mortality for all diagnostic criteria except Dhillon but only UNOS, Makowka and MEAF were associated with 2-year mortality. Hospital mortality was poorly predicted by all criteria except for the MEAF score. CONCLUSION: We found a poor agreement between different criteria analyzed for the diagnosis of EAD. In our population, the MEAF score showed the best relationship with short- and long-term mortality.

C-reactive protein at ICU admission as a marker of early graft dysfunction after liver transplant. A prospective, single-center cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the behavior of C-reactive protein (CRP) after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) during the first postoperative days, and its usefulness as a marker of severe early allograft dysfunction (EAD). DESIGN: A prospective, single-center cohort study was carried out. SETTING: The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a regional hospital with a liver transplant program since 1997. PATIENTS: The study comprised a total of 183 patients admitted to our ICU immediately after liver transplantation between 2009 and 2015. VARIABLES OF INTEREST: C-reactive protein levels upon ICU admission and after 24 and 48h, severe EAD and hospital mortality. RESULTS: The CRP levels after OLT were: upon ICU admission 57.5 (51.6-63.3)mg/L, after 24h 80.1 (72.9-87.3)mg/L and after 48h 69.9 (62.5-77.4)mg/L. Severe EAD patients (14.2%) had higher mortality (23.1 vs 2.5; OR 11.48: 2.98-44.19) and lower CRP upon ICU admission (39.3 [29.8-48.7]mg/L) than the patients without EAD (0.5 [53.9-67.0]; p<0.05] - the best cut-off point being 68mg/L (sensitivity 92.3%; specificity 40.1%; Youden index 0.33). Lower CRP upon ICU admission was correlated to higher mortality (24.5 [9.2-39.7] vs 59.4 [53.4-65.4]; p<0.01, AUC 0.79 [0.65-0.92]). CONCLUSION: Liver transplant is a strong inflammatory stimulus accompanied by high levels of C-reactive protein. A blunted rise in CRP on the first postoperative day after OLT may be a marker of poor allograft function and is related to hospital mortality.

[Use of isolated epoprostenol or associated to heparin for the maintenance of the patency of the continuous renal replacement technical circuits]. / Uso de epoprostenol aislado o asociado a heparina para el mantenimiento de la permeabilidad de los circuitos de técnicas continuas de reemplazo renal.

OBJECTIVE: At present, there is no consensus on the best anticoagulant regimen for the maintenance of extrarenal clearance circuits (RRTC). We present our experience with the isolated use of epoprostenol in patients at risk of bleeding or associated to non-fractionated heparin (nFH) in patients with problems of early coagulation of the filters. DESIGN: Prospective study of cohorts on all the RRTC filters used in our service since 1994. SCOPE: Forty-two-bed polyvalent ICU in a tertiary hospital. INTERVENTIONS: Anticoagulation was administered in prefilter perfusion, at doses of 5-7 U/kg/hour for nFH or 4-5 ng/kg/min for epoprostenol. The combined use was done with equal doses of epoprostenol and nFH at 2,5 U/kg/hour. VARIABLES OF MAIN INTEREST: We analyzed the duration of each filter, reason for removing the filter, existence of coagulopathy, platelet count, appearance of bleeding, anticoagulant used and dose. RESULTS: We analyzed the use of 2,322 filters (66,957 hours) in 389 patients, 54% of whom had a clot. nFH was used in 74% of the filters for a median of 39 hours (interquartile range: 19-75), epoprostenol in 6% for 32 hours (interquartile range: 17-48) and combined therapy in 4% for 27 hours (interquartile range: 19-41). In the epoprostenol group, we detected a decrease in blood pressure in only two filters that became normal when the dose was decreased. The filters that were initially anticoagulated with nFH had a 14-hour survival as a median versus 27 hours in combined therapy (p < 0.001). In absence of coagulopathy or thrombopenia, we observed mild bleeding in 8%, moderate in 1% and serious in 1% in the 1,170 filters treated with nFH. We only observed mild bleeding in 3% in 66 filters with epoprostenol. CONCLUSIONS: Isolated epoprostenol in patients at risk of bleeding provided a similar duration of the filters to nFH, decreasing the risk of bleeding. The use of epoprostenol plus low dose nFH significantly increases their duration in patients with early coagulation.

[Thrombolytic therapy in acute myocardial infarct. New performance protocols. Their influence on mortality and the incidence of complications]. / Terapéutica trombolítica en el infarto agudo de miocardio. Nuevos protocolos de actuación. Su influencia en la mortalidad e incidencia de complicaciones.

The new protocols of actuation in acute myocardial infarction thrombolysis have increased the number of patients treated, and have changed their characteristics. To assess the influence that this event has had in the complications incidence and mortality rate, we revise 704 infarcts treated with thrombolytic in a coronary unit, during 8 years. We separate two groups: 1) Patients treated since november 1983 to december 1988 following the established protocol at the beginning of this therapeutic (n = 328). 2) Patients treated since this date to july 1991, with a new protocol that include older than 70 years patients, moore than 6 hours of therapeutics delay and use of another thrombolytics, moreover streptokinase (n = 376). These changes have increased the number of thrombolysis in the second group (24.6 vs 49.1%; p < 0.001). Nevertheless being a higher group of risk we have found neither a significant mortality increase (6.40 vs 7.71%; p = NS), nor complications related to the thrombolysis: The incidence of major hemorrhages were 2.13 vs 1.06% (p = NS), cerebral hemorrhages 0.91 vs 1.6% (p = NS), hypotension related to the thrombolytics 15.55 vs 5.85% (p < 0.001). Neither has had significant difference in the incidence of reinfarcts (6.42 vs 5%; p = NS). In conclusion, the great number of thrombolysis realized nowadays, due to the actuation protocols changes, have increased significantly, neither the complications related with this therapeutic, nor the mortality rate, nor the reinfarcts number.

[Acute renal failure profile and prognostic value in severe acute pancreatitis]. / Características y valor pronóstico del fracaso renal agudo en la pancreatitis aguda grave.

BACKGROUND: Acute renal failure (ARF) complicating severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) carries a high mortality. Clinically useful scores to define patients who will develop this complication are lacking. We try to determine the incidence of ARF and variables predicting the appearance and severity of the episodes. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Retrospective study of all SAP patients admitted in an intensive care unit between 1991 and 1998 (n = 154). RESULTS: ARF incidence was 42%. Haemodynamic instability, APACHE II and Ranson score were related to ARF development. 62.2% of severe ARF patients had multiple organ failure (MOF). Mortality was 71.2% compared to 6.8% in patients without ARF (39.9% in mild ARF and 94.6% in severe ARF). Etiology relates to mortality (prerenal [46.4%], after severe hypotensive episode [71.4%], in MOF [93.3%]; p < 0.005). 63.6% patients required replacement therapy (hemofiltration [HF] 95.5%), with a mortality of 89.3% (100% for intermittent dialysis compared to 88% with HF). In 32% patients treated with HF, ARF improved (when initiated early mortality was 76.9% compared to a 100% when initiated in more advanced stages) (p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that ARF severity and haemodynamic failure were related with mortality. CONCLUSION: ARF is a frequent and early complication of SAP, worsening its prognosis. FRA severity is related to the outcome. Need of replacement therapy supposes a high mortality. In this setting, HF seems to have advantages over conventional dialysis.

[Comparative study of protected alveolar lavage versus occluded telescopic catheter in patients with suspected pneumonia and under mechanic ventilation]. / Estudio comparativo del lavado alveolar protegido frente al catéter telescópico ocluido en pacientes con sospecha de neumonía y en ventilación mecánica.

BACKGROUND: The pneumonias associated to mechanical ventilation present great difficulty in diagnosis and have a high mortality. The invasive diagnostic technique of choice in these patients is bronchial curettage by a double telescopic catheter with distal occlusion (OTC) based on its good sensitivity/specificity relation. Recently, the use of a variant of the classical bronchoalveolar lavage (BRL), bronchoalveolar lavage or protected alveolar lavage (PAL) has appeared in the diagnosis of conventional bacterial pneumonia. This new technique provides good specificity of OTC by its use with "protected" catheters and a high sensitivity due to exploration of a greater area of the lung. METHODS: Twenty patients receiving mechanical ventilation (MV) suspected of pneumonia in whom 21 fibrobronchoscopies (FB) were performed with OTC and PAL were studied with quantification of the cultures obtained being carried out. The OTC was performed according to the usual technique and PAL by the instillation of 40 ml of saline serum administered through a Combicath type catheter. RESULTS: OTC and PAL provided diagnostic results which coincided in 8 cases: the same germs were isolated at significant concentrations in six patients and in the two remaining cases direct immunofluorescence for Legionella was positive. PAL was diagnosed in 4 more cases with the diagnosis of viral inclusion bodies being possible in one upon cytologic examination. The count of cells with intracellular bacteria (ICB) was greater than 7% and was always related with positivity in the PAL. CONCLUSIONS: A greater sensitivity was observed with the protected alveolar lavage technique. Moreover, this technique makes virologic investigation and the counting of cells with intracellular bacteria, which may be a marker of rapid diagnosis of bacterial pneumonia, possible.

Dialysis Efficiency of AN69, a Semisynthetic Membrane Not Well Suited for Diffusion.

AN69 membrane is not suited for diffusion, with an suggested limit at 25 mL/min dialysate flow rate. When prescribing continuous hemodialysis this threshold must be surpassed to achieve. We designed a study aimed to check if a higher dose of dialysis could be delivered efficiently with this membrane. Ten ICU patients under continuous hemodiafiltration with 1.4 m(2) AN69 membrane were included and once a day we set the monitor to exclusively 50 mL/min dialysate flow rate and 250 mL/min blood flow rate and after 15 minutes measured dialysate saturation for urea, creatinine, and ß 2-microglobulin. We detected that urea saturation of dialysate was nearly complete (1.1 ± 0.09) for at least 40 hours, while creatinine saturation showed a large dispersion (0.86 ± 0.22) and did not detect any relation for these variables with time, blood flow, or anticoagulation regime. Saturation of ß 2-microglobulin was low (0.34 ± 0.1) and decreased discretely with time (r (2) = 0.15, P < 0.05) and significantly with TMP increases (r (2) = 0.31, P < 0.01). In our experience AN69 membrane shows a better diffusive capability than previously acknowledged, covering efficiently the range of standard dosage for continuous therapies. Creatinine is not a good marker of the membrane diffusive capability.

CdSe and ZnSe quantum dots capped with PEA for screening C-reactive protein in human serum.

A fluorescence chemical sensor for C-reactive protein (CRP) was developed based on the selective interaction with CdSe and ZnSe quantum dots (QDs) coated with O-phosphorylethanolamine (PEA). Synthesis procedure and analytical parameters such as pH and ionic strength were studied. The decrease in the fluorescence emission intensity was explained due to the specific interaction of the QDs-PEA with CRP, and a correlation was observed between the quenching of the fluorescence and the concentration of CRP. The accuracy of the proposed method was 0.37% as RSD. The proposed method was applied to screen serum samples, and showed to be sensible at the C-reactive protein concentrations of risks levels.

Thiolated DAB dendrimer/ZnSe nanoparticles for C-reactive protein recognition in human serum.

A nanocomposite obtained by a thiol DAB-dendrimer (generation 5), coated with fluorescent ZnSe quantum dots, was successfully synthesized for the selective recognition of C-reactive protein. The procedure presented was carried out by a novel, cheap and non-toxic bottom up synthesis. The nanocomposite showed an excitation at 180 nm, with two emission bands at 411 and 465 nm, with a full-width at half-maximum of 336 nm. The Stokes shift was influenced by the presence of coating molecules and the intensity was dependent on pH due to the presence of a charge transfer process. The transmission electron microscopy images demonstrated that the spherical nanoparticles obtained displayed a regular shape of 30 nm size. The fluorescence intensity was markedly quenched by the presence of C-reactive protein, with a dynamic Stern-Volmer constant of 0.036 M(-1). The quenching profile shows that about 51% of the ZnSe QDs are located in the external layer of the thiol dendrimer accessible to the quencher. The precision of the method obtained as relative standard deviation was 3.76% (4 mg L(-1), n=3). This water soluble fluorescent nanocomposite showed a set of favorable properties to be used as a sensor for the C-reactive protein in serum samples, at concentrations of risk levels.

[Concordance in critical patients between the equations designed for the calculation of glomerular filtration rate and 24-hour creatinine clearance]. / Concordancia en pacientes críticos entre las ecuaciones diseñadas para la estimación del filtrado glomerular y el aclaramiento de creatinina en orina de 24h.

OBJECTIVE: To study the behavior of the different equations used to estimate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) applied to critical care patients compared to the standard method: 24-hour creatinine clearance (24-CrCl). DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of data base from a previous observational prospective study. SETTING: Polyvalent ICU in a tertiary Hospital. POPULATION: All adult patients admitted to our Unit during the study who had a bladder catheter inserted. Anuric patients were excluded. INTERVENTIONS: We measured 24-CrCl and estimated GFR by MDRD, modified Jelliffe (JF), Mayo-Clinic (CM) and Cockroft-Gault (C-G) equations. VARIABLES: To evaluate degree of agreement, we grouped patients regarding 24-CrCl as normal (>70), moderate dysfunction (69-50) or severe renal dysfunction (< 50 mL/min/1.73 m(2)). RESULTS: 307 patients, aged 54+/-18, 69.7% males. Measured 24-CrCl was 109.2+/-78.2 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and the estimate one 95.5+/-56.7 for JF, 87.4+/-53.4 for C-G, 86.9+/-55.9 for MDRD and 85.6+/-39.9 for CM. The difference was significant (p<0.001) for all estimates but lower for (13.7+/-53.2 mL/min/1.73 m(2)) than C-G (21.9+/-58.3), CM (23.6+/-59.6) or MDRD (22.3+/-60.4). Correlation coefficient was 0.73 for JF, 0.67 C-G or CM and 0.64 for MDRD. The degree of agreement was only fair for all measures (Kappa 0.55 for JF or MDRD, 0.51 for C-G and 0.5 for CM). CONCLUSIONS: Modified Jelliffe equation showed higher agreement with 24-CrCl than Cockroft-Gault, MDRD or Mayo-Clinic equations when used in critically ill patients. However, when exact measurement is needed, none of the equations can be considered adequate and in these cases, the CrCl should be calculated.

[Liver transplantation: influence of donor-related factors]. / Trasplante hepático: influencia de los factores dependientes del donante.

OBJECTIVE: To detect donor characteristics related to graft function after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. CONTEXT: Polyvalent intensive care unit. PATIENTS: 145 liver transplant recipients and their respective donors. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN VARIABLES OF INTEREST: In donors: age, hypernatremia, and infection. In recipients: reperfusion syndrome, coagulopathy, infection, ARDS, shock, kidney failure, primary graft dysfunction, and mortality. RESULTS: 71.7% of recipients were male. Mean recipient age was 54.5 +/- 9.9 years; 66.2% of patients were classified as Child B and and 19.3% as Child C. The mean model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score was 14.6 +/- 4.8 and the mean APACHE II score was 17.3 +/- 4.9. A total of 64.1% of the donors were male. Mean donor age was 42.3 +/- 16.3 years, and mean APACHE II score was 22.3 +/- 5.8. Donor age > 65 years was associated to higher recipient aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels but not to increased complications or mortality. No other donor factors (including age, sex, serum sodium, severity level, transfusions, hemodynamic alterations, renal dysfunction, or infection) were associated to evolution or prognosis. Infection was diagnosed in 18 recipients (12.4%) in the postoperative period; the incidence of infection in recipients that received an organ from infected donors was not different from those that received an organ from an uninfected donor (14.6% versus 11.5%; p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: We detected no donor characteristics related to graft function or the appearance of complications in recipients during the immediate postoperative period. Donor age > 65 years and documented but appropriately treated bacteremia posed no risk for the viability of the liver after transplantation.

[Safety and efficacy of the MARS therapy applied by continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) monitors]. / Seguridad y eficacia de la terapia MARS aplicada mediante monitores de TCRR.

OBJECTIVE: Analyze the utility and safety of MARS therapy applied with the CRRT monitor. DESIGN: Prospective study of cohorts. SCOPE: Polyvalent ICU in tertiary university hospital with hepatic transplantation program. PATIENTS: Thirty one patients: 9 (22.6%) with acute liver failure (ALF) (1 hepatic surgery, 1 primary graft failure, 7 other causes) and 22 (71%) with acute-on-chronic failure (AoCLF). INTERVENTIONS: For the treatment, the patients with ALF are maintained in the ICU but those with AoCLF are admitted for the performance of the different sessions, that are programmed for a duration of at least 15 hours in AoCLF and in ALF are maintained continuously, changing the circuit every 24 hours. VARIABLES OF INTEREST: Metabolic control and complications registered in 75 sessions on 31 patients. RESULTS: Urea decrease was 33.5 (29-38%), creatinine 36 (31-41%), total bilirubin 29 (25-33%) and direct bilirubin 34 (30-38%). Clearance was slower, but sustained, after the first 4 hours of each session both for urea (p<0.001) as well as for bilirubin (p<0.05). The hemodynamic parameters improved and the hematological ones were not altered. We detected decrease in platelets (131 to 120x109/L, p<0.01). In 95 of the sessions in which heparin was used and in 6% where epoprostenol was used, we observed mild bleeding. We cultured albumin of the circuit at the end of the session in 50 occasions and only obtained growth in 3 cases (6%) (2 Staphylococcus epidermidis, 1 S. haemolyticus) without signs of contamination in the patients. CONCLUSIONS: The MARS system applied by CRRT monitors provide adequate bilirubin clearance percentages and is safe, even in serious patients. Prolongation of the duration of the sessions was not accompanied by an increase in the risk of infection secondary to the albumin contamination.

[Epidemiology of acute kidney failure in Spanish ICU. Multicenter prospective study FRAMI]. / Epidemiología del fracaso renal agudo en las UCI españolas. Estudio prospectivo multicéntrico FRAMI.

OBJECTIVE: Multicenter study oriented at establishing the incidence and prognosis of acute kidney failure (AKF) in the ICU of our country. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Prospective study of adult patients admitted over 8 months in 43 Spanish ICUs to detect AKF defined as creatinine>or=2 mg/dl or diuresis<400 ml/24 hours (in chronic patients 100% increase of creatinine, excluding those with baseline creatinine>or=4 mg/dl). RESULTS: 901 episodes of AKF (AKF episodes (incidence 5.7%), 55% of which occurred on admission. A total of 38.4% of the episodes were due to acute tubular necrosis (ATN), 36.6% to prerenal, and 21.2% to mixed. Renal depuration (RC) was required in 38%. Mortality was 42.3% during the AKF episode (34.1% in those who were admitted with AKF versus 50.9% in those who developed it after admission), 80% in patients with Hepatorenal Syndrome, 51.6% in ATN and 29.9% in prerenal. We detect an independent relationship with mortality for age (OR 1.03), background of diabetes (OR 2.06), development of AKF in the ICU (OR 2.51), oliguria (OR 5.76) and RC (OR 2.32). Recovery of the kidney function occurred in 85.6% of the survivors and RC was maintained in only 1.1% on discharge from the ICU. We calculated the area under the curve of APACHE II on admission (0.62), SOFA on onset of AKF (0.68), Liaño index (0.7) and maximum SOFA (0.79). CONCLUSIONS: AKF in ICU patients does not show an elevated incidence but does have high mortality, presenting greater seriousness when it appears after admission. However, recovery is elevated in patients who survive. The usual prognostic indexes are not exact in this patient group, the ISA and maximum SOFA being those which shows a closer relationship with mortality.