The role of the nurse in the management of acute kidney injury.

Acute kidney injury can occur with patients within the hospital and within the community setting. The term acute kidney injury replaces the previous recognized term acute renal failure in the literature and uses two internationally recognized classification systems. The causes of acute kidney injury remain the same, pre renal failure, intra renal (intrinsic), or post renal failure. The nursing care of acute kidney injury is challenging and multifaceted as the patient can be critically ill and requires constant monitoring. It is therefore vital that nurses understand what acute kidney injury is, and the management of it in order to deliver holistic care to the patient concerned.