The long-term prognosis of acute kidney injury: acute renal failure as a cause of chronic kidney disease

There is a widespread opinion that acute kidney injury (AKI) is a rather harmless complication and that survival is determined not by renal dysfunction per se, but by the severity of the underlying disease. This opinion is in sharp contrast to evidence from several recent experimental and clinical investigations indicating that AKI is a condition which exerts a fundamental impact on the course of the disease, the evolution of associated complications and on prognosis, independently from the type and severity of the underlying condition. In conclusion, severe AKI in the critically ill patient is associated with high rates of morbidity, mortality and consumption of health care resources.