Factors Associated with the Onset of Acute Kidney Injury Following Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a complication often observed in critically ill patients, indicating a worsening prognosis. However, factors predicting AKI in subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) patients are unclear. This study aims to elucidate the predictors of AKI occurrence.

All patients with SAH admitted to the intensive care unit between 2013 and 2019 were included. Patients with very severe SAH who are unsuitable to receive aggressive treatment, those who previously received a contrast medium at another medical institution within 24 hours before admission, and those on maintenance dialysis were excluded. We retrospectively examined blood tests conducted upon admission, oral medications administered, and the total amount of contrast medium used after initiating treatment to investigate their association with AKI occurrence.

Of the 254 SAH patients treated during the relevant period, 195 (median age 64 years, 72 males) met the inclusion/exclusion criteria, and 32 patients (16.3%) developed AKI. When multivariate analysis was performed using sex, uric acid level, and hemoglobin, which obtained P < 0.01 in the univariate analysis, as variables, only uric acid level was found as an independent predictor of AKI (odds ratio, 1.501; 95% confidence interval, 1.109-2.033, P value of 0.009). There was no difference in the occurrence of AKI between survivors and nonsurvivors (12/163 vs. 2/32, P = 0.824).

AKI occurred in 16.3% of the patients with SAH. Patients who developed AKI had significantly higher uric acid levels. SAH with high uric acid levels warrants attention for AKI.