Renal Failure and Transplantation

Overview.

Acute renal failure is defined as a sudden loss of renal function that may be due to inadequate renal perfusion, renal cell injury, or obstruction to urine flow. The term acute kidney injury (AKI) has been proposed to replace the term acute renal failure and is gaining wide acceptance. AKI usually develops in hospitalized children as a result of systemic illness or its treatment and not from primary renal disease. The most common causes of AKI in children are renal ischemia, nephrotoxic drugs, and sepsis. Other important causes are listed in Box 117.1 . AKI from any cause can lead to chronic kidney disease. Recovery of renal function, at least in part, depends on the underlying events leading to injury.