Plasma gelsolin level predicts acute kidney injury after cardiopulmonary bypass in infants and young children.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is a common complication especially in pediatric population. Plasma gelsolin (pGSN) is an anti-inflammatory factor through binding with actin and pro-inflammatory cytokines in circulation. Decrease in pGSN has been reported in some pathologic conditions. The purpose of the study was to determine the alterations of pGSN level in infants and young children after CPB and the role of pGSN as a predictor for the morbidity and severity of post-CPB AKI.

Methods: Sixty-seven infants and young children at age ≤ 3 years old undergoing CPB were prospectively enrolled. PGSN levels were measured during peri-operative period with enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay and normalized with plasma total protein concentration. Other clinical characteristics of the patients were also recorded.

Results: In patients developing AKI, the normalized pGSN (pGSN) levels significantly decreased at 6 h post-operation and remained low for 24 h post-operation as compared to the patients with non-AKI. PGSN at 6 h post-operation combining with CPB time presents an excellent predictive value for AKI.

Conclusions: Decreased pGSN identifies post-CPB AKI in the patients ≤ 3 years old, and is associated with adverse clinical outcomes. The findings suggest that circulating GSN in post-CPB patients may have beneficial effects on diminishing inflammatory responses.