Skip to Content

AKI in Critically Ill Children and Risk of De Novo Sepsis: New Editorial in Kidney360 Highlights Importance of Recent Study from UPMC Children’s Nephrologist Cassandra Formeck, MD, MS

April 6, 2023

In December 2022, Cassandra Formeck, MD, MS assistant professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Nephrology at UPMC Children’s was the first author of a new study published online first in Kidney360 exploring the link and risk for de novo sepsis infection in critically ill children who experience an acute kidney injury (AKI).

The goal of the study was to better characterize the temporal features of AKI-associated immune dysfunction among critically ill children. After adjusting for other known risk factors for hospital-acquired infection, the study found that hospital-acquired sepsis occurred twice as often among children with AKI compared to those without AKI, and that the risk for sepsis remained elevated for at least two weeks in children with severe AKI. Importantly, in two-thirds of children with AKI, the heightened risk for sepsis persisted beyond normalization of their kidney function. This suggests that AKI-associated immune dysfunction is not simply a result of decreased renal clearance, but due to a more complex interaction between the kidneys and the immune system.

Read an article about the study here.

New Editorial on Study

In the March 2023 edition of Kidney360, along with Dr. Formeck’s study, the journal also published an editorial, under the title “Sepsis and AKI: A Two-Way Street.”

The editorial’s authors highlight the importance of Dr. Formeck and colleague’s study as it relates to evaluating the risk of sepsis in this patient population, and advocates for vigilance on the part of clinicians and care teams to watch for signs of sepsis after AKI, and to the extent possible, minimize factors that may heighten the possibility of infections in these children.

The full text of the editorial is available on the Kidney360 website, along with the original study.

Learn more about Dr. Formeck and her research.

References 

Formeck CL, Feldman R, Althouse AD, Kellum JA. Risk and Timing of De Novo Sepsis in Critically Ill Children After Acute Kidney Injury. Kidney360. 2023; 4(3): 308-315.

Basalely A, Menon S. Sepsis and AKI: A Two-Way Street. Kidney360. 2023; 4(3): 289-290. Editorial.