Alert over ‘needless’ kidney patient deaths

Between 12,000 and 42,000 deaths could be prevented annually if patients received the best possible care.

Around 100,000 cases of acute kidney injury (AKI) – previously called acute renal failure – could also be stopped across England with simple checks such as ensuring patients are hydrated and their medicines are reviewed.

A new guideline from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) says AKI costs the NHS between £434m and £620m a year – more than it spends on breast, lung and skin cancer combined.

AKI refers to a loss of kidney function and can develop very quickly. It can occur in people who are already ill with conditions such as heart failure or diabetes, and those admitted to hospital with infections.

AKI can also develop after major surgery, such as some kinds of heart surgery, because the kidneys can be deprived of normal blood flow during the procedure.

If the condition is not picked up quickly it can lead to the kidneys shutting down, which can cause severe illness and death.

Between 262,000 and one million people admitted to hospital as an emergency will have AKI, of which just under a quarter will die.

A 2009 report from the National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death found only half of all patients with AKI had received good care.

The new guideline from Nice says NHS staff should measure serum creatinine levels – a marker of kidney function – in those with existing conditions such as heart failure, liver disease, diabetes, a history of kidney problems or blood poisoning.