Kidney support for babies: building a comprehensive and integrated neonatal kidney support therapy program.

Kidney support therapy (KST), previously referred to as Renal Replacement Therapy, is utilized to treat children and adults with severe acute kidney injury (AKI), fluid overload, inborn errors of metabolism, and kidney failure. Several forms of KST are available including peritoneal dialysis (PD), intermittent hemodialysis (iHD), and continuous kidney support therapy (CKST). Traditionally, extracorporeal KST (CKST and iHD) in neonates has had unique challenges related to small patient size, lack of neonatal-specific devices, and risk of hemodynamic instability due to large extracorporeal circuit volume relative to patient total blood volume.

Use of the Selective Cytopheretic Device in Critically Ill Children.

Introduction: Critically ill children with acute kidney injury (AKI) requiring continuous kidney replacement therapy (CKRT) are at increased risk of death. The selective cytopheretic device (SCD) promotes an immunomodulatory effect when circuit ionized calcium (iCa) is maintained at <0.40 mmol/l with regional citrate anticoagulation (RCA).

Improving the quality of neonatal acute kidney injury care: neonatal-specific response to the 22nd Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) conference.

With the adoption of standardized neonatal acute kidney injury (AKI) definitions over the past decade and the concomitant surge in research studies, the epidemiology of and risk factors for neonatal AKI have become much better understood. Thus, there is now a need to focus on strategies designed to improve AKI care processes with the goal of reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with neonatal AKI. The 22nd Acute Dialysis/Disease Quality Improvement (ADQI) report provides a framework for such quality improvement in adults at risk for AKI and its sequelae.

Does Your Program Know Its AKI and CRRT Epidemiology? The Case for a Dashboard.

Current acute kidney injury (AKI) literature focuses on diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes. While little literature exists studying the quality of care delivered to patients with AKI. However, improving outcomes for patients is dependent on the specifics of the delivered care (i.

Quality Improvement Goals for Acute Kidney Injury.

AKI is a global concern with a high incidence among patients across acute care settings. AKI is associated with significant clinical consequences and increased health care costs. Preventive measures, as well as rapid identification of AKI, have been shown to improve outcomes in small studies.

Process based quality improvement using a continuous renal replacement therapy dashboard.

Background: The prevalence of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) utilization in critically ill patients with acute kidney is increasing. In comparison to published and on-going trials attempting to answer questions surrounding the optimal timing of CRRT initiation, anticoagulation, and modality, a paucity of literature describes the quality of the therapy delivered.

Methods: We conducted a single-center process improvement project to determine if a methodology to assess the quality of CRRT delivery could lead to improvement in CRRT delivery outcomes.

Therapeutic plasma exchange may improve hemodynamics and organ failure among children with sepsis-induced multiple organ dysfunction syndrome receiving extracorporeal life support.

Objective: To determine the effect of therapeutic plasma exchange on hemodynamics, organ failure, and survival in children with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome due to sepsis requiring extracorporeal life support.

Design: A retrospective analysis.

Setting: A PICU in an academic children's hospital.

Renal replacement therapy in the treatment of confirmed or suspected inborn errors of metabolism.

Objective: Analysis of mortality and risk factors for mortality in the use of renal replacement therapy to correct metabolic disturbances associated with confirmed or suspected inborn errors of metabolism.

Study Design: A retrospective review of an institutional review board-approved pediatric acute renal failure data base at the University of Michigan. Eighteen patients underwent 21 renal replacement therapy treatments for metabolic disturbances caused by urea cycle defects (n = 14), organic acidemias (n = 5), idiopathic hyperammonemia (n = 1), and Reye syndrome (n = 1).

Pre dialysis of blood prime in continuous hemodialysis normalizes pH and electrolytes.

In critically ill children weighing <10 kg, it is necessary to use blood as a priming solution for the extracorporeal continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) circuit before initiating CRRT to prevent hemodilution and maintain adequate oxygenation. However, blood bank blood usually contains supra-physiological electrolyte concentrations and a non-physiological acid-base balance that may exacerbate the patient's condition. The objective of this trial was to develop a simple protocol to pre-treat blood bank-derived blood to yield a more physiological blood priming solution.

Survival and renal function in pediatric patients following extracorporeal life support with hemofiltration.

OBJECTIVE: To determine variables associated with survival in pediatric patients treated with hemofiltration while receiving extracorporeal life support and to determine the probability for recovery of renal function among survivors. DESIGN: Retrospective database analysis. SETTING: University of Michigan pediatric nephrology database.