Community-Acquired acute kidney injury in critically Ill children as seen in the emergency unit of a tertiary hospital in Enugu, Southeast Nigeria

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) has been shown to be common in critically ill patients with associated very poor outcome. There is paucity of data regarding its epidemiology, particularly in developing countries. This study aims to assess the presence of AKI among critically ill children to determine its prevalence, outcome, and outcome determinants in children suffering from AKI. Patients and Methods: This is a cross-sectional observational study of critically ill children admitted to the children emergency unit of University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku Ozalla, Enugu. Critically ill children suffering from AKI were identified and classified using the pediatric RIFLE criteria. Result: A total of 300 children were studied. One hundred and eighty (60%) were males. The prevalence of AKI in the study population was 56%. Factors associated with AKI included age <5 years (OR = 3.618; 95% CI = 2.100-6.235; P < 0.001), inability to drink (OR = 2.866; 95% CI = 1.723-4.766; P < 0.001), tachycardia (OR = 2.111; 95% CI = 1.071-4.163; P = 0.031), unconsciousness (OR = 3.128, 95% CI = 1.303-7.511; P = 0.011), and hypotension (OR = 2.619; 95% CI = 1.008-6.804; P = 0.048). The odds of death increased with increasing severity of AKI among those who had pRIFLE-F, who were 24 times more likely to die than those with no AKI (OR = 24.38; 95% CI = 5.702-104.194; P = 0.001). Conclusion: The prevalence of AKI in the study population was unacceptably high. The risk factors to its occurrence can be determined from epidemiologic and clinical data, and therefore, clinicians attending to critically ill patients should identify those with AKI for early intervention to reduce the expected poor outcomes associated with its occurrence.