Frequency of Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy Use Early in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic

A subset of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 develop renal failure and require continuous renal replacement therapy. We reviewed the available literature to understand the frequency of continuous renal replacement therapy use among patients with coronavirus disease 2019 who required intensive care.

The authors reviewed PubMed and Google Scholar for published studies and MedRxiv.com for unpublished studies.

Observational and randomized studies that report the frequency of continuous renal replacement therapy use in adult patients with coronavirus disease 2019.

Data from the eligible studies were extracted independently by two authors into Microsoft Excel.

We identified 12 eligible studies (eight published, four unpublished). We found that up to 20% of patients admitted to ICUs may require continuous renal replacement therapy.

Given the high utilization of continuous renal replacement therapy by critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019, there may be an urgent need to mobilize inpatient dialysis resources to cope with the anticipated increase in the demand.