Background: Down syndrome (DS) is associated with various congenital diseases and malformations, including those of the kidneys and urinary tract. It has been thought that renal tubular acidosis (RTA) is more frequent in this population. The objective of this study was to assess the frequency of RTA and, secondarily, of other renal and urological disorders in persons with DS. Method: An observational, ambispective, descriptive and cross-sectional study of patients diagnosed with RTA, or suspected kidney or urological disorders, was carried out from July 2016 to September 2017 at the Down syndrome clinic of the Mexican National Institute of Paediatrics. Urinalysis was performed, along with analyses of venous blood gas, sodium, potassium, chlorine, calcium, phosphorus, albumin and creatinine. Those with any abnormal values were referred to nephrology for diagnostic evaluation. Results: Of a total of 700 patients seen at the clinic, 47 met the selection criteria. Of these, 32 had no RTA or other renal or urological alterations. The remaining 15 continued to the second phase of the study, where 6 were diagnosed with nephropathy or uropathy (RTA, systemic arterial hypertension, monosymptomatic familial haematuria, mild renal failure secondary to reflux nephropathy, urinary tract infection or right ureteropelvic stenosis). Four had mild metabolic acidosis without meeting the criteria for diagnosis of RTA. Conclusion: RTA is not more common in children with Down syndrome. Nephropathies and uropathies should be investigated in the evaluation of DS patients.

Severe Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) is a common, serious problem affecting critically ill children that lacks effective treatment options. Currently, there are no treatment options for AKI other than supportive care. Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) is employed to reduce Fluid Overload (FO) burden and treat metabolic disturbances in AKI. Identifying patients upon admission who may require CRRT has potential clinical care implications. The aim of this study was to determine if the RAI had diagnostic capabilities to identify patients who would require CRRT. The analytic cohort consisted of patients who required CRRT and illness severity score matched controls who did not require CRRT at a single center. Patients who required CRRT had higher mortality rates, length of stay, and use of ventilatory and inotropic support. Sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) assessed and compared the discriminatory accuracy of three scores: 1) the renal angina index (RAI), 2) serum-creatinine (sCr) based AKI on day 0 and 3) modified RAI created with an additional RAI injury tranche that corresponded to severe stage 3 AKI sCr elevation. Compared to Day0AKI (AUC 0.78, 0.70-0.87; sensitivity 0.63, 0.45-0.79; specificity 0.93, 0.870.97) and RAI (AUC 0.76, 0.69-0.82; sensitivity 0.94, 0.81-0.99; specificity 0.57, 0.47-0.66), the modified RAI had the highest AUC (0.79; 0.72-0.85) with a high sensitivity (0.91; 0.77-0.98) and moderate specificity (0.65; 0.56-0.75) for prediction of CRRT requirements. As a more accurate tool for discriminating patients in need of CRRT, a modified RAI has numerous potential implications. Identifying patients who ultimately require CRRT at an earlier timepoint may influence timing of CRRT initiation in an attempt to avoid further FO, or may influence nephrotoxin administration. The diagnostic capabilities of the modified RAI may be refined by the addition of urinary biomarkers. These findings should be validated in a larger cohort.

Background: There is enough evidence to suggest that vancomycin increases the risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) but the exact mechanism is not well understood. This study aims to understand the incidence of vancomycin-associated acute kidney injury (VA-AKI) among hospitalized patients and to identify the risk factors for VA-AKI. Methods: Patients aged 18 and above who received a minimum of 24 hours of intravenous vancomycin and who had serial creatinine measurements over a 13-month period were identified through electronic records. Patients with pre-existing AKI, or eGFR of less than 30ml/min, and patients with end stage kidney disease were excluded. Results were analyzed using t-test and Fisher’s test. A logistic regression model was used to identify the predictors for VA-AKI. Results: From the 598 patients who met the inclusion criteria, 70 developed AKI. Compared to those without AKI, patients with VA-AKI had higher mean serum vancomycin trough levels (22.6 mg/L vs. 14.6 mg/L), and a statistically significant longer duration of vancomycin use (6.7 vs. 5.2 days). Multivariate analysis revealed that serum vancomycin level of > 20 mg/L was associated with a six-fold increase in odds of VA-AKI when compared to those with vancomycin levels < 15 mg/L. The presence of hypotension, iodinated contrast use, and concomitant use of piperacillin-tazobactam were all associated with increased odds of VA-AKI. Conclusion: The incidence of VA-AKI in hospitalized patients with eGFR > 30 ml/min was 11.7%. Serum vancomycin levels of > 20 mg/L, hypotension and administration of iodinated contrast significantly increased the risk of VA-AKI. Piperacillin-tazobactam, when used with vancomycin, was noted to be an independent predictor of AKI, regardless of serum vancomycin trough levels, prompting a reevaluation of the safety of this widespread practice as empiric therapy. Close monitoring of kidney function, avoiding high serum vancomycin levels, maintaining hemodynamic stability, and avoiding unnecessary use of iodinated contrast seem to be essential for the prevention of VA-AKI.

Background: There is a paucity of data on the burden of acute kidney injury (AKI) in hospitalized HIV-infected patients in Sub-Saharan Africa in the “test and treat” era.Objectives: To study the incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of AKI among HIV-positive medical admissions in a secondary hospital.Materials and methods: We prospectively screened adult HIV-positive patients who gave their informed consent and were admitted to the Bamenda Regional Hospital for AKI from February to June 2020. We excluded participants with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Stage 5 and those with confounders of serum creatinine. On admission and after 2-7 days, we extracted a venous blood sample from each participant to evaluate serum creatinine and diagnose AKI. The participants were then followed up on until they were discharged or died. We measured the need for dialysis, access to dialysis, and renal recovery at three months for patients with AKI. The amended KDIGO 2012 criteria were used to define and classify AKI. The University of Bamenda’s institutional review board provided ethical approval.Results: A total of 206 participants (39.8% men) were enrolled, with a mean (SD) age of 45.71(13.13) years. On enrolment, 89.8% (n = 185) of the participants were on combination antiretroviral therapy (c-ART), with 81.6% (n = 151) on tenofovir-containing regimens. The WHO HIV clinical stages 3 and 4 were present in 81.5% (n = 168) of the individuals. The most common reason for hospitalization was opportunistic infections (69.8%; n = 142). AKI was found in 30.6% (n = 63) of the patients, with 58.7% (n = 37) of them being classified as KDIGO stage 3. A total of 12 (42.9%) participants out of the 28 in need, were dialyzed. AKI was independently associated with use of traditional medicines (aOR = 2.9; 95% CI 1.4-6.3; p = 0.006), WHO HIV stages 3 and 4 (aOR = 4.1; 95% CI 1.1-15.7; p = 0.038), hypotension (aOR = 3.3; 95% CI 1.4-7.8; p = 0.008) and low haemoglobin level ≤ 8.0 g/dl (aOR = 3.5; 95% CI 1.7-7.4; p = 0.001). The AKI group used to have a significantly higher mortality rate (42.9% vs. 16.1%; p < 0.001). Renal recovery was complete in 66.7% of the 30 survivors at three months, partial in 13.3%, and no recovery in 20% of the survivors.Conclusion: Despite the growing use of combination antiretroviral medication, significant immunosuppression is still common in hospitalized HIV-positive patients, increasing the risk of AKI and worsening prognosis. In this high-risk population, early detection of AKI with renal function monitoring may improve results.

Introduction and aim: The most accurate way of measuring kidney function in GFR. Clinical formulas based on creatinine measurement may be inaccurate mainly in elderly patients (over 80 years of age). In this study we evaluated the accuracy of commonly used clinical formulas by comparing them with a direct measurement with [99mTc]-DTPA ([99mTc]-diethylene-triamine-peracetic acid) in a population of patients aged eighty and older.Material and methods: 47 patients (27 males and 20 females) with an average age of 81.9 ± 1.7 years, 80% already diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), were investigated. Two plasma samples were collected between 60-90 and 165-190 minutes after the injection of [99mTc]-DTPA and GFR were calculated. Results: When comparing the GFR values obtained from the various formulae by creatinine levels with the GFR value obtained by measuring [99mTc]-DTPA residue, the following concordance values emerged: (1) MDRD: 55.3%, (2) Cockroft-Gault 55.3% (3) CKD-EPI 57.5% (4) BIS-1 51.1%Conclusion: Our data show a poor correlation between all clinical methods and [99mTc]-DTPA, which remains a gold standard for the direct measurement of GFR.

Ms X is a 40-year-old gravida 12, para 2+9 woman, who was admitted for an elective caesarean section at 38 weeks gestation following the previous two caesarean sections. Ms X had abdominal distension and generalised abdominal tenderness in the postoperative period. On investigation, she was found to have an elevated white cell count (WCC), C - Reactive Protein (CRP) and creatinine with free fluid in the abdomen on imaging but there was no evidence of perforation of any visceral organ. Ms X was treated conservatively for sepsis, an Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) and post-operative ileus and her symptoms gradually resolved. This is a case of idiopathic ascites post caesarean delivery with no clear cause.

Background: One of the common causes of chronic allograft nephropathy is nonadherence to medications, contributing to 30% of graft loss in the developed world. The non-adherence is attributed predominantly to pill burden.Once-daily dosing of tacrolimus instead of conventional twice-daily dosing may enhance adherence to medication and improve long-term outcomes. The present study is a retrospective analysis comparing the safety and effectiveness of De Novo (use from day 1) once daily (OD) Tacrolimus (extended-release capsules) to conventional twice-a-day (BD) tacrolimus, in renal transplant recipients operated at Suguna Hospital Bangalore India. Material and Methods: Records of 24 Transplant patients on De novo OD Tacrolimus were analyzed and compared retrospectively to 24 transplant patients treated De Novo with conventional BD tacrolimus on a regular follow-up for at least 2 yrs. post-transplant at our center. Results: Various parameters recorded till the last follow-up were analyzed and compared. The average weight of the cohort (64.6 kg vs. 66.6 kg), average tacrolimus dose (2.7 mg vs. 2.15 mg), average Tac dose/kg body weight (0.04 mg vs. 0.03 mg), average Sr.Creatinine, at Last, Follow up (1.2 mg/dl vs. 1.32 mg/dl) were comparable in both groups and were statistically insignificant (p > 0.05). However, there was a higher incidence of Post-Transplant Diabetes Mellitus (PTDM) noted in the Conventional BD Tacrolimus group (20.83%) compared to the OD Tacrolimus group (4.1%) and it was statistically significant (p = 0.17). The Infection rate of 41.67% in the conventional BD Tacrolimus group was much higher compared to the OD Tacrolimus group (4.17%) which was statistically significant (p = 0.01). There was 100% patient and graft survival at the end of two years in both groups. Tacrolimus Dose for OD and Conventional BD dosing were similar, unlike earlier studies recommending a 10% increase in dose for OD tacrolimus compared to BD dosing.Conclusion: OD Tacrolimus dose is comparable to conventional BD dose Tacrolimus in its safety and Efficacy; however, it scores over conventional BD dose Tacrolimus in terms of post-transplant infections and post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) and a more stable serum trough level. 

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus and diabetic nephropathy are the most common causes of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in developed countries, accounting for about 30% of these cases. Up to 40% of patients with type 2 diabetes with micro albumin uria progress to overt nephropathy and develop ESRD after one to two decades. Albumin uria is the most important indicator of diabetic nephropathy and its progression. Also, hyperuricemia has been suggested as a risk factor for kidney damage, this study was designed to determine the relationship between serum uric acid level and proteinuria in patients with type 2 diabetes.Materials and methods: In this descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study, data collection was performed among patients with type 2 diabetes referred to the diabetic Center in Gorgan from the years 2015 to 2018. The data collection tool was a two-part questionnaire including demographic and anthropometric characteristics and information about the disease. Serum levels of Uric Acid, Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN), Creatinine (Cr), Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS) and Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C) were measured in all patients. 24-hour urine collection was performed for proteinuria, albuminuria, urinary volume, and Cr volume. Patients’ GFR was also calculated using the CKD-EPI formula. Patients were re-evaluated 1 year after the initial evaluation in terms of measured factors and the relationship between serum uric acid and albuminuria, proteinuria, kidney function, and other serum factors were evaluated.Results: Among 823 diabetic patients that were referred to the nephrology center in this study, 90 patients were included. 34 (37.8%) of these patients were men. The age range of patients was between 32 years to 70 years with a mean of 56.31 and a standard deviation of 7.84 years. According to the Pearson correlation coefficient, a direct correlation was observed between uric acid with proteinuria and creatinine levels, and an inverse correlation was observed between uric acid and GFR. But we didn’t find any correlation between uric acid and microalbuminuria.Conclusion: According to the results of this study, the relationship between uric acid level and the severity of nephropathy (based on proteinuria) is proven. It seems that maintaining serum uric acid levels in patients with type 2 diabetes within the normal range and treatment with serum uric acid-lowering drugs may be possible to reduce the progression of diabetic nephropathy and proteinuria.

Hyperemesis gravidarum may prompt hypovolemia and significant electrolyte anomalies. Hypokalemia is one of the most common abnormalities. When practical, it may lead to rhabdomyolysis. We report a rare case of rhabdomyolysis in a 24 years old pregnant woman due to hyperemesis gravidarum. She had a profound weakness. Physical examination and laboratory findings showed a need for the hospital admission. Aggressive rehydration and electrolytes were the definite treatment. Her serum creatinine kinase (CK) concentration during entry was 80,01 units/L.Continuous rehydration led to complete recovery clinically. On discharge, she had normal laboratories.

Renal impairment is one of the most severe non-communicable diseases around the world. Especially patients with diagnosed/newly diagnosed renal impairment who needed surgery are more focused on preoperative and postoperative preparation. Serum creatinine is the prime biochemical marker for assessing renal function and the level of impairment is widely measured by this marker as well as Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR). Objective: Factors responsible for fluctuating serum creatinine during preoperative and postoperative periods and minimizing the process of serum creatinine is the ultimate goal of this study. Method: 37 patients participated in this cross-sectional study who were previously diagnosed/newly diagnosed. They were admitted to different tertiary-level hospitals for emergency or elective surgery. 15 patients were admitted in the renal function impairment stage and 22 were admitted as normal patients’. Values of creatinine at the pre-admission stage and 2nd/3rd post-admission follow-up were compared. Results: 0.41 was the average of 22 patients’ creatinine between pre-admission and 2nd/3rd follow-up. The responsible factor like prolonged staying, immobilization, co-morbidities, different preoperative antibiotics and NSAIDs were also inducers for creatinine elevation. After postoperative hemodialysis rapid decrease of creatinine is seen in normal patients but this decrease is very much minor in CKD-diagnosed patients. 

Background/Aim: There has been a progressive rise in the incidence and prevalence of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). It has also been observed that the most important reasons for a rapid increase in Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) patients are the rapidly increasing worldwide incidence of diabetes and hypertension. The present study evaluates the effect of diabetes, hypertension, and comorbid state of hypertension and diabetes (hypertensive-diabetic) on renal function using serum creatinine and urea as markers. Method: A total number of 120 persons were recruited for the research; 30 controls, 30 hypertensive, 30 diabetic, and 30 hypertensive-diabetic persons. Of the 30 control persons, 18 were females and 12 were males; of the 30 hypertensive subjects, 17 were females and 13 were males; of the 30 diabetics subjects, 20 were females and 10 were males, whereas of the 30 hypertensive-diabetic subjects, 21 were females and 9 were males. In total, there were seventy-six (76) females and 44 males. The respondents were pulled from Central Hospital (Auchi) Diabetic and General Clinic and Auchi Polytechnic Cottage Hospital. Verbal consent was sort and questionnaires were used to extract information regarding biodata and patients’ history of diabetes and hypertension. Height and weight were measured, and blood pressure was determined taken. Blood samples were collected into fluoride oxalate and lithium heparin bottle for the assessment of FBS and (serum urea and creatinine) respectively. Results: The mean (±SD) serum creatinine was higher in the hypertensive-diabetic group (2.08 ± 1.06) and declined as follows: diabetic group (1.75 ± 1.01), hypertensive group (1.34 ± 0.96) and control group (0.70 ± 0.14). The mean (±SD) serum urea was also found to be higher in the hypertensive-diabetic group (17.5 ± 9.06) and declined as follows: diabetic group (14.5 ± 6.13), hypertensive group (12.7 ± 6.23) and control group (7.18 ± 5.06). There was a positive correlation between serum creatinine and fasting blood sugar The study also established a positive correlation between serum creatinine and blood pressure but not between serum urea and blood pressure with r values of 0.31 and 0.16 respectively. Conclusion: Good control of blood glucose and blood pressure levels reduces the likelihood of the development of renal impairment which is usually associated with both diabetes and hypertension. Co-morbidity of diabetes and hypertension poses a higher risk of developing renal disease than individual problems of diabetes and hypertension. Serum creatinine and serum urea are important biomarkers for renal impairment hence the two should be monitored on a regular basis for diabetic and hypertensive patients and much more frequently for hypertensive-diabetic patients.

Background and aim: Congestive heart failure is a prevalent and serious condition that poses significant challenges in the emergency department setting. Prompt and accurate management of congestive heart failure patients is crucial for improving outcomes and optimizing resource utilization. This study aims to address these challenges by developing a machine learning algorithm and comparing it to a traditional logistic regression model that can assist in the triage, resource allocation, and long-term prognostication of congestive heart failure patients.Methods: In this investigation, we used the MIMIC-III database, a publicly accessible resource containing patient data from ICU settings. Traditional logistic regression, along with the robust XGBoost and random forest algorithms, was harnessed to construct predictive models. These models were built using a range of pretreatment clinical variables. To pinpoint the most pertinent features, we carried out a univariate analysis. Ensuring robust performance and broad applicability, we adopted a nested cross-validation approach. This method enhances the precision and validation of our models by implementing multiple cross-validation iterations.Results: The performance of machine learning algorithms was assessed using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). Notably, the random forest algorithm, despite having lower performance among the machine learning models still demonstrated significantly higher AUC than traditional logistic regression. The AUC for the XGBoost was 0.99, random forest 0.98, while traditional logistic regression was 0.57. The most important pretreatment variables associated with congestive heart failure include total bilirubin, creatine kinase, international normalized ratio (INR), sodium, age, creatinine, potassium, gender, alkaline phosphatase, and platelets.Conclusion: Machine learning techniques utilizing multiple pretreatment clinical variables outperform traditional logistic regression in aiding the triage, resource allocation, and long-term prognostication of congestive heart failure patients in the intensive care unit setting using MIMIC III data.

Background: Liver cancer is a global health concern, with overweight and obese individuals exhibiting an increased risk of its development. Understanding the interplay between obesity-related factors and liver cancer incidence is crucial for early prediction and intervention.Aim: The aim of this investigation was to construct and validate an extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) based machine learning model for the purpose of establishing a one-year liver cancer risk prediction system specifically tailored to overweight and obese patients. In addition, this study sought to compare the predictive performance of the XGBoost model with those of a random forest model and a logistic regression model, while also identifying the most influential predictive features for liver cancer incidence.Methods: A comprehensive retrospective analysis was conducted on MIMIC III data comprising 2,354 patients. To predict the risk of liver cancer development, three machine learning models were developed: XGBoost, random forest, and logistic regression. Feature selection was executed using a stepwise regression procedure encompassing both forward selection and backward elimination.Results: The stepwise regression technique unveiled 14 predictive factors for liver cancer incidence. Among the patient cohort, 132 individuals developed liver cancer within a year of follow-up, while 2,222 did not. Notably, most liver cancer cases occurred in male patients (60%). Statistically significant differences were observed between patients with liver cancer and those without, in terms of age, gender, total bilirubin, platelet, albumin, chloride, potassium, sodium, prothrombin time (PT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). The XGBoost model exhibited an impressive area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of 99%, Random Forest (RF) of 99%, and Logistic Regression (LR) of 90%. In a multivariate analysis, total bilirubin, creatinine levels, age, gender, ALT, alkaline phosphate (ALP), PT, calcium, and chloride emerged as independent predictors for liver cancer incidence.Conclusion: The XGBoost model demonstrated superior predictive performance when compared to the RF and LR models. If corroborated through prospective studies, the XGBoost model may prove to be a valuable tool for the early prediction of liver cancer risk in overweight or obese individuals. Such predictive capabilities could, in turn, facilitate the implementation of timely preventive interventions against liver cancer.

Herpes zoster ophthalmicus, commonly referred to as shingles, manifests as a painful skin rash affecting one or more dermatome distributions of the trigeminal nerve, which supplies sensory innervation to the eye and its surrounding structures. Acyclovir stands as the primary pharmacological intervention for the treatment of this condition. However, its administration is associated with a notable risk of adverse effects, with acute kidney injury being the most prevalent. Herein, we present a case report involving a 59-year-old female patient who developed acute kidney injury after the prescription of Acyclovir for the management of herpes zoster ophthalmicus. This case underscores the importance of vigilance regarding potential renal complications associated with Acyclovir therapy, particularly in susceptible patient populations.