Doctor warns against kidney damage from Covid-19

The condition inhibits the kidneys’ ability to keep the correct balance of fluids in the body.

As per Jha, AKI can range from minor loss of kidney function to complete kidney failure.

Existing data indicate approximately 15-30 percent of patients admitted to hospital with Covid-19 developed AKI, rising to roughly 40 percent for those in intensive care.

However, a recent study led by a kidney specialist at the University of Queensland and published in PLOS Medicine found millions of Covid-19 patients may have undiagnosed AKI, and the actual numbers could be double the current figures.

AKI diagnosis

As per Kidney specialist Dr Marina Wainstein, doctors look at the amount of urine a patient passes and the level of a compound called creatinine in the blood, which rises when the kidneys aren’t working well.

If that creatinine rise occurs before a patient is taken to a hospital, doctors can miss the AKI diagnosis and fail to manage the patient appropriately in those early, critical days of hospitalisation.

The data exposes the large gap in ongoing AKI diagnosis.

As a result of AKI, kidneys witness an abnormal rise in creatinine, which leads to dialysis becoming necessary.

The occurrence of AKI in an individual acts as a marker of Covid-19 infection severity.

Commenting on the research findings, Jha said, “Patients who require dialysis have high chances of death. But its timely diagnosis is a challenge as many people fail to recognise interrelated complications to AKI such as urine abnormalities. Therefore, the study significantly indicates the undiagnosed AKI in Covid-19-related cases.”