Long-term risk of upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage after advanced AKI

There are few reports on temporary dialysis-requiring AKI as a risk factor for future upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB). This study sought to explore the long-term association between dialysis-requiring AKI and UGIB.

This nationwide cohort study used data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. Patients who recovered from dialysis-requiring AKI and matched controls were selected from hospitalized patients age ≥18 years between 1998 and 2006. The cumulative incidences of long-term de novo UGIB were calculated, and the risk factors of UGIB and mortality were identified using time-varying Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for subsequent CKD and ESRD after AKI.

A total of 4565 AKI-recovery patients and the same number of matched patients without AKI were analyzed. After a median follow-up time of 2.33 years (interquartile range, 0.97-4.81 years), the incidence rates of UGIB were 50 (by stringent criterion) and 69 (by lenient criterion) per 1000 patient-years in the AKI-recovery group and 31 (by stringent criterion) and 48 (by lenient criterion) per 1000 patient-years in the non-AKI group (both P<0.001). When compared with patients in the non-AKI group, the multivariate hazard ratio (HR) for UGIB was 1.30 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.14 to 1.48) for dialysis-requiring AKI, 1.83 (95% CI, 1.53 to 2.20) for time-varying CKD, and 2.31 (95% CI, 1.92 to 2.79) for time-varying ESRD (all P<0.001). Finally, the risk for long-term mortality increased after UGIB (HR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.12 to 1.38) and dialysis-requiring AKI (HR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.54 to 1.78).

Recovery from dialysis-requiring AKI was associated with future UGIB and mortality.