Renal Function In Acute Heart Failure Research Articles

Incidence and impact of acute cardiorenal syndrome

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: None. Background Acute (or type 1) cardio-renal syndrome (ACRS) is defined as the acute kidney injury in patients hospitalized for acute heart failure (HF), which often is associated to a complex and complicated clinical course. In addition, renal failure is a strong predictor of long-term adverse events in patients with acute heart failure (HF). Purpose To investigate the impact of ACRS, what factors are related to its occurrence, and how it affects the outcome of patients hospitalized with acute HF. Methods We studied consecutive patients hospitalized with acute HF from January 2019 to December 2020. Renal function as well as other biomarkers were recorded and monitored during hospitalization, and correlated with various clinical characteristics, risk factors and patient outcome. Results The sample consists of 612 patients, mean age 77 ± 12 years, 63% men with average duration of hospitalization 6 ± 4 days. A total of 37 deaths (6%) were observed. ACRS was found in 141 patients (23%) and independent prognostic factors for its occurrence were ischemic cardiomyopathy, age, prolonged hospitalization, use of aldosterone antagonists and high CRP upon admission. The incidence of ACRS during hospitalization was an independent prognostic factor of death (r = 0.15, p = 0.02) and anemia (r = 0.24, p = 0.04), while the outcome of death was more common in patients with ACRS - but without statistical significance - compared to patients without ACRS. Conclusion Deterioration of renal function in acute HF is associated with anemia and death. Factors such as ischemic cardiomyopathy, age, length of hospital stay seem to play a role in the onset of ACRS and should be taken into account in these patients, to prevent negative outcomes.

Is There Any Interaction Between Sex and Renal Function Change During Hospital Stay in Patients Hospitalized With Acute Heart Failure?

BackgroundRenal dysfunction is a strong predictor of outcomes in patients with acute heart failure (AHF). However, less is known about how sex may influence the prognostic import of renal function in AHF. Methods and ResultsIn a post hoc analysis of the ASCEND-HF trial including 5377 patients with AHF (33% female), patients were categorized into 3 groups based on the changes in renal function during their hospital stay. Worsening, stable, and improving renal functions were defined as a ≥20% decrease, a <20% change, and a ≥20% increase in the estimated glomerular filtration rate, respectively. The primary outcome was the composite of 30-day all-cause mortality or HF rehospitalization. The median baseline and discharge estimated glomerular filtration rate were 58.4 and 56.9 mL/min/1.73 m2, respectively. Worsening, stable, and improving renal function was observed in 31.9%, 63.2, and 4.9% of patients, respectively. Worsening renal function was associated with adverse outcomes at 30 days (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.47, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.22–1.76). This association existed in both males and females (aHR 1.42 and aHR 1.56, respectively, both P < .01). There was an interaction between renal function changes and sex (P = .025), because improving renal function was associated with better outcomes in men (aHR 0.29, 95% CI 0.13–0.66) as compared with women (aHR 1.18, 95% CI 0.59–2.35). There was no interaction between the ejection fraction and renal function in association with subsequent outcomes. ConclusionsIrrespective of sex, worsening renal function was associated with poorer outcomes at 30 days in patients with AHF. More studies are warranted to further delineate the possible sex differences in this setting.

Trajectories of Changes in Renal Function in Patients with Acute Heart Failure

BackgroundChanges in renal function have been associated with differential outcomes in patients with acute heart failure (HF). However, individual trajectories of changes in renal function are unknown, and it is unclear whether they relate to different clinical characteristics and clinical outcomes. Our aim was to investigate the prognostic importance of individual trajectories of change in renal function in acute HF. MethodsThis was a retrospective, observational analysis from the double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled PROTECT trial in patients with acute HF. We identified and internally validated 8 different renal trajectories among 1897 patients by visual inspection of inhospital serum creatinine changes. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality at 180 days. Mean age was 70 ± 12 years; 70% were male, and mean baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate was 49.0 mL/min/1.73m2. ResultsA total of 8 different trajectories was established. The most prevalent trajectories were an inhospital bump (19.0%), a sustained increase (17.6%) and a dip (14.5%) in serum creatinine. Overall, the clinical characteristics of patients in different trajectories were remarkably similar. Crude 180-day mortality rates ranged from 12.0% in the trajectory, with no significant changes to 18.3% in the trajectory of sustained increase without significant differences. Overall, after multivariable adjustment, there was no trajectory of changes in renal function that was associated with significantly better or worse outcomes. ConclusionsTrajectories of changes in renal function in acute HF differ considerably on the patient level. Despite these differences, clinical characteristics and outcomes were similar, therefore, questioning the prognostic importance of changes in renal function in acute HF.

Renal function on admission modifies prognostic impact of diuretics in acute heart failure: a propensity score matched and interaction analysis.

Although intravenous diuretics have been mainstay drugs in patients with acute heart failure (AHF), they have been suggested to have some deleterious effects on prognosis. We postulated that renal function may modify their deleterious effects in AHF patients. The study population consisted of 1094 AHF patients from three hospitals. Renal dysfunction (RD) was defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <60mL/min/1.73m2 on admission, and the cohort was divided into a high-dose furosemide (≥100mg/48h) and low-dose furosemide group according to the amount of intravenous furosemide used within 48h from admission. In the whole cohort, in-hospital mortality rate was higher in the high-dose furosemide group than the low-dose furosemide group (12.5 vs. 6.6%, respectively, P=0.001). However, this difference in the in-hospital mortality rates was significant only in the RD subgroup (15.6 vs. 7.0%, respectively, P<0.001), and not in the non-RD subgroup (2.5 vs. 5.9%, respectively, P=0.384). Propensity score-matched analysis was performed to evaluate the impact of high-dose furosemide on prognosis. After propensity score matching, high-dose furosemide was not associated with in-hospital mortality (OR 1.25, 95% CI 0.73-2.16, P=0.408). However, there was a qualitative difference in OR for in-hospital mortality between AHF with RD (OR 1.77, 95%CI 0.96-3.28, P=0.068) and without RD (OR 0.23, 95%CI 0.05-1.10, P=0.064), and there was a significant interaction between eGFR and prognostic impact of high-dose furosemide (P for OR interaction=0.013). An inverse relationship was observed between eGFR and OR for in-hospital death in the group treated with high-dose furosemide (decreasing OR with better eGFR). The deleterious effect of diuretics was significantly modified with renal function in AHF. This association may be one reason for poorer prognosis of AHF patients complicated with renal impairment.

Renal impairment and worsening of renal function in acute heart failure: can new therapies help? The potential role of serelaxin.

Renal dysfunction is a frequent finding in patients with acute heart failure (AHF) and an important prognostic factor for adverse outcomes. Worsening of renal function occurs in 30-50% of patients hospitalised for AHF, and is associated with increased mortality, prolonged hospital stay and increased risk of readmission. Likely mechanisms involved in the decrease in renal function include impaired haemodynamics and activation of neurohormonal factors, such as the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, the sympathetic nervous system and the arginine-vasopressin system. Additionally, many drugs currently used to treat AHF have a detrimental effect on renal function. Therefore, pharmacotherapy for AHF should carefully take into account any potential complications related to renal function. Serelaxin, currently in clinical development for the treatment of AHF is a recombinant form of human relaxin-2, identical in structure to the naturally occurring human relaxin-2 peptide hormone that mediates cardiac and renal adaptations during pregnancy. Data from both pre-clinical and clinical studies indicate a potentially beneficial effect of serelaxin on kidney function. In this review, we discuss the mechanisms and impact of impairment of renal function in AHF, and the potential benefits of new therapies, such as serelaxin, in this context.