Risk Factors for Development of Acute Kidney Injury in COVID-19 Patients: A Retrospective Observational Cohort Study

Abstract

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) in coronavirus infection disease (COVID-19) is associated with disease severity. We aimed to evaluate risk factors associated with AKI beyond COVID-19 severity.

Methods: A retrospective observational study of COVID-19 patients admitted to a tertiary hospital in Singapore. Logistic regression was used to evaluate associations between risk factors and AKI (based on Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes criteria). Dominance analysis was performed to evaluate the relative importance of individual factors.

Results: Seven hundred seven patients were included. Median age was 46 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 29-57) and 57% were male with few comorbidities (93%, Charlson Comorbidity Index [CCI] <1). AKI occurred in 57 patients (8.1%); 39 were in AKI stage 1 (68%), 9 in stage 2 (16%), and 9 in stage 3 (16%). Older age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.04; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01-1.07), baseline use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACE-I) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) (aOR 2.86; 95% CI: 1.20-6.83), exposure to vancomycin (aOR 5.84; 95% CI: 2.10-16.19), use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (aOR 3.04; 95% CI: 1.15-8.05), and severe COVID-19 with hypoxia (aOR 13.94; 95% CI: 6.07-31.98) were associated with AKI in the multivariable logistic regression model. The 3 highest ranked predictors were severe COVID-19 with hypoxia, vancomycin exposure, and age, accounting for 79.6% of the predicted variance (41.6, 23.1, and 14.9%, respectively) on dominance analysis.

Conclusion: Severe COVID-19 is independently associated with increased risk of AKI beyond premorbid conditions and age. Appropriate avoidance of vancomycin and NSAIDs are potentially modifiable means to prevent AKI in patients with COVID-19.

Keywords: Acute renal failure; Chronic kidney disease; Creatinine.

Fig. 1

Flow chart of study population of COVID-19 patients admitted to the National Center for Infectious Diseases, Singapore. Eight hundred seventy-three patients excluded as there were no available data collected. An additional four excluded as there was no record of serum Cr, one had preexisting end-stage kidney disease and was on regular hemodialysis, and five had single serum Cr level, which was above the upper limit of laboratory range in the hospital where CKD cannot be excluded.