Current opinion in nephrology and hypertension
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Curr. Opin. Nephrol. Hypertens. · May 2014
ReviewEarly-invasive strategies for the management of coronary heart disease in chronic kidney disease: is acute kidney injury a consideration?
People with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are less likely to receive early-invasive management of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The purpose of this article is to review the risks and outcomes of early-invasive versus conservative strategies, and to consider how contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) should factor in treatment decisions for people with CKD. ⋯ These findings illustrate that the additional short-term risk of AKI associated with invasive management should be considered alongside long-term treatment effects on other clinical outcomes and should not act as a deterrent to their use. Strategies to increase the uptake of an invasive management approach, accompanied by the use of CI-AKI prevention strategies, could benefit high-risk individuals with CKD.
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Curr. Opin. Nephrol. Hypertens. · May 2014
ReviewEstimating and measuring glomerular filtration rate: methods of measurement and markers for estimation.
Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is the best overall measure of kidney function. Reference GFR measurements (e.g. inulin clearance) are laborious. Estimation of GFR using equations based on endogenous filtration markers is simpler, cheaper and easy to apply in practice but suffers from limited accuracy and reproducibility. This review summarizes the recent studies comparing measured and estimated GFR in various populations and disease settings. We consider the utility of newer estimating equations based on standardized methodology, including those incorporating cystatin C. ⋯ The ideal biomarker and equation to estimate GFR would provide reproducible and accurate results across the entire range of GFRs, populations and diseases. Newer GFR markers and equations are required to fulfil this holy grail of research.