Acute Kidney Injury and Hypertension in COVID-19 Infection

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all the infrastructures of human life and has turned into a global emergency. COVID-19 infection mostly affects the respiratory system but can also cause multi-organ failure, such as acute kidney injury (AKI). The present review aims to assess the relationship between COVID-19 and kidney disorders and hypertension. Methods: The six official databases, namely PubMed, WHO COVID-19 database, Academic Search Premier, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and CORD-19, were searched for scientific reports (original articles) using the keywords: “COVID-19”, “Coronavirus”, “SARS CoV-2”, “Kidney disease”, “Acute renal failure”, “Kidney transplant”, and "Hypertension". A total of 58 articles were considered for a full review. Results: The prevalence of AKI was more than 6% prevalent in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, AKI and hypertension were associated with higher morbidity and mortality. To control hypertension, there were different opinions and findings regarding the use of angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs); however, most of the studies suggested using these drugs to control blood pressure. AKI is associated with higher morbidity and mortality rates. Conclusion: A simple urinalysis in patients with suspected COVID-19 can reveal renal dysfunction at the earlier onset of complication, which may be very helpful before progressing to late-stage kidney disease. In addition to AKI, hypertension is considered to be accompanied by a worse prognosis. Further studies must be performed to clarify all the aspects of using hypertension medications in COVID-19 patients