Longitudinal Analysis of Urinary Cytokines and Biomarkers in COVID-19 Patients with Subclinical Acute Kidney Injury.

In hospitalized COVID-19 patients, disease progression leading to acute kidney injury (AKI) may be driven by immune dysregulation. We explored the role of urinary cytokines and their relationship with kidney stress biomarkers in COVID-19 patients before and after the development of AKI. Of 51 patients, 54.9% developed AKI. The principal component analysis indicated that in subclinical AKI, epidermal growth factor (EGF) and interferon (IFN)-α were associated with a lower risk of AKI, while interleukin-12 (IL-12) and macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1ß were associated with a higher risk of AKI. After the manifestation of AKI, EGF and IFN-α remained associated with a lower risk of AKI, while IL-1 receptor (IL-1R), granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), interferon-gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP-10) and IL-5 were associated with a higher risk of AKI. EGF had an inverse correlation with kidney stress biomarkers. Subclinical AKI was characterized by a significant up-regulation of kidney stress biomarkers and proinflammatory cytokines. The lack of EGF regenerative effects and IFN-α antiviral activity seemed crucial for renal disease progression. AKI involved a proinflammatory urinary cytokine storm.

Acute kidney injury in patients with severe COVID-19 in Mexico.

INTRODUCTION: Some patients with COVID-19 pneumonia present systemic disease involving multiple systems. There is limited information about the clinical characteristics and events leading to acute kidney injury (AKI). We described the factors associated with the development of AKI and explored the relation of AKI and mortality in Mexican population with severe COVID-19. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of individuals with severe pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2 hospitalized at the largest third-level reference institution for COVID-19 care in Mexico between March and April 2020. Demographic information, comorbidities, clinical and laboratory data, dates of invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) and hospitalization, mechanical-ventilator settings and use of vasoactive drugs were recorded. RESULTS: Of 99 patients studied, 58 developed AKI (58.6%). The risk factors for AKI were older age (OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 1.01-1.13, p = 0.024); obesity (OR = 6.58, 95% CI = 1.8-24.05, p = 0.040); and the need for IMV (OR = 6.18, CI = 1.29-29.58, p = 0.023). The risk factors for mortality were obesity (OR = 5.57, 95% CI = 1.48-20.93, p = 0.011); requirement of vasoactive drugs on admission (OR = 5.35, 95% CI = 1.16-24.61, p = 0.031); and AKI (OR = 8.61, 95% CI = 2.24-33.1, p = 0.002). In-hospital mortality was significantly higher in patients with AKI stage 3 (79.3%) and AKI stage 2 (68.7%) compared with those with AKI stage 1 (25%; p = 0.004). Fifty-three patients underwent the furosemide stress test (FST) to predict progression to AKI stage 3. Of those, 12 progressed to AKI stage 3 (22%). The ROC curve for the FST had an AUC of 0.681 (p = 0.009); a sensitivity of 81.6% and a specificity of 54.5%. CONCLUSIONS: AKI was common in our cohort of patients with severe pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection. The risk factors for AKI were older age, obesity and the need for of IMV on admission. The risk factors for mortality were obesity, requirement of vasoactive drugs on admission and AKI. Mortality was more frequent in patients with AKI stages 2-3. The FST had an acceptable predictive capacity to identify patients progressing to AKI stage 3.