Nephrology consultation in acute renal failure: does timing matter?

Purpose: Patients who develop acute renal failure in the intensive care unit (ICU) have extremely high rates of mortality and morbidity. The goals of this study were to identify correlates of the timing of nephrology consultation in acute renal failure, and to explore the relation between timing of consultation and outcomes.

Methods: We explored associations among timing of nephrology consultation and in-hospital mortality, lengths of hospital and ICU stay, and recovery of renal function in 215 ICU patients with acute renal failure at four U.