ORGAN FUNCTION DURING EARLY ACUTE-RENAL-FAILURE DOES NOT PREDICT SURVIVAL IN LONG-TERM INTENSIVE-CARE

Objective: To examine outcome in relation to organ function variables during early acute renal failure (ARF). Design: Retrospective inceptio n cohort. Setting: General intensive care unit (ICU). Patients: 69 con secutive ARF cases verified to have a creatinine clearance below 50 ml /min with no history of previous renal disease. Main outcome measure: ICU survival. Measurements and results: Septic severity score (SSS), c reatinine clearance, thrombocyte count, bilirubin concentration, cardi ac inotropic support, PaO2/FIO2 ratio and oliguria were measured. No d ifferences related to outcome were observed in patients surviving more than 7 days after ARF diagnosis. Patients dying within 7 days of ARF had a significantly higher (worse) SSS. Organ dysfunction was establis hed at the time of ICU admission in the majority of cases. Conclusion: The organ function variables tested in this study are of limited pred ictive value during the early stage of ARF.