Background: Very low birth weight (VLBW) neonates commonly experience acute kidney injury (AKI) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We hypothesize that VLBW neonates exposed to AKI in the NICU might be at a higher risk of renal dysfunction during childhood.
Methods: In this cohort study, VLBW children (aged 3-7 years) completed a kidney health evaluation and were stratified according to AKI status in the NICU. The primary outcome was renal dysfunction defined as any of the following: estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <90 mL/min/1.73 m2, urine protein/creatinine >0.2 or blood pressure ≥95th percentile.
Results: Thirty-four subjects completed the study. Twenty subjects had a history of neonatal AKI (stage 1, n = 8; stage 2, n = 9; and stage 3, n = 3). At a median age of 5 years, the AKI group had a higher risk of renal dysfunction compared with the group without AKI (65% vs 14%, relative risk 4.5 (1.2-17.1), p = 0.01). Overall, 26% of the total cohort had an eGFR <90 mL/min/1.73 m2 using serum cystatin C (35% of AKI subjects, 14% of no AKI subjects, p = 0.25).
Conclusions: Evidence of renal dysfunction in neonates born VLBW can be found early in childhood. Further work is necessary to determine how to reduce renal disease in this vulnerable population.
Keywords: Chronic kidney disease; Cystatin C; KDIGO; NICU; Prematurity; Very low birth weight.