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Updated: Feb 25, 2026

A Large Animal Model for Acute Kidney Injury by Temporary Bilateral Renal Artery Occlusion
Published on: February 2, 2021
[Correlation between serum uric acid level and acute renal injury after coronary artery bypass grafting]
1Cardiac Surgery ICU of Fuwai Hospital, Peking Union Medical College & Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100037, China.
Insights
Early postoperative serum uric acid levels can predict acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Higher uric acid levels indicate a significantly increased risk of developing AKI post-surgery.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Cardiology
- Critical Care Medicine
Background:
- Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).
- Predictive biomarkers for postoperative AKI are crucial for timely intervention and improved patient outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the potential of early postoperative serum uric acid levels as a predictor of AKI in CABG patients.
- To compare the predictive performance of serum uric acid against serum creatinine for AKI.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 1,306 patients undergoing CABG.
- Patients were stratified into five groups based on postoperative day 1 serum uric acid concentrations.
- AKI incidence, severity (RIFLE criteria), need for continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), in-hospital mortality, and length of stay were assessed.
Main Results:
- AKI occurred in 25.65% of the study cohort.
- Patients in the highest serum uric acid group (Q5) exhibited a significantly higher risk of AKI, severe AKI, and CRRT requirement (P<0.01).
- Serum uric acid demonstrated superior predictive ability for AKI compared to serum creatinine (AUC 0.722 vs. 0.648, P<0.001).
Conclusions:
- Early postoperative serum uric acid concentration is an independent predictor of postoperative AKI in CABG patients.
- Serum uric acid can serve as a valuable tool for identifying high-risk individuals for AKI after CABG.
- This finding may facilitate early risk stratification and management strategies for preventing AKI.
Abstract:
Objective: To evaluate whether early postoperative serum uric acid level can predict postoperative acute renal injury (AKI) among patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods: The study retrospectively enrolled 1 306 patients undergoing CABG in Fuwai Hospital between September 2012 and December 2013. The patients were divided into 5 groups by the concentrations of serum uric acid measured on the morning of the first postoperative day, and uric acid categories were as follow: less than 195 μmol/L (Q1 group, 262 cases), 195-236 μmol/L (Q2 group, 263 cases), 237-280 μmol/L (Q3 group, 260 cases), 281-336 μmol/L (Q4 group, 261 cases), more than 336 μmol/L (Q5 group, 260 cases). The primary end points were AKI (RIFLE criteria), severe AKI (AKI≥stage Ⅰ), postoperative continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) requirement, in-hospital death, length of stay in hospital and intensive care unit(ICU). The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) was used to determine the ability of the early postoperative serum uric acid level as a risk factor for postoperative AKI prediction. Results: Among the 1 306 patients enrolled in the study, AKI was found in 335 patients (25.65%). After adjusting for variables that were different between the 5 groups, the Q5 group had significantly higher risk of AKI, AKI≥ stage Ⅰ and the requirement of CRRT (P<0.01). The ROC for the outcome of postoperative AKI had an AUC of 0.648 (95% CI: 0.612-0.683) when serum creatinine levels alone were used and 0.722 (95% CI: 0.688-0.755) when serum uric acid levels alone were used (both P<0.001). Early postoperative serum uric acid was a better predictor than serum creatinine(P<0.001). Conclusion: The serum uric acid concentration within 12 hours after operation is an independent predictor of postoperative AKI in patients undergoing CABG, which could be used to identify patients at high risk for AKI.
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