Arch Intern Med
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The high incidence and prevalence of end-stage kidney disease among African Americans is well known, but the epidemiology of acute renal failure (ARF) among African Americans is unknown. This study was designed to determine the incidence, associated risk factors, and prognosis of ARF in hospitalized African Americans and to compare these variables in hospital-acquired ARF (HA-ARF) against community-acquired ARF (CA-ARF). ⋯ The overall epidemiologic characteristics of ARF among hospitalized African Americans seem to be comparable to those in whites, but the difference in incidence between CA-ARF and HA-ARF was much higher in African Americans. In view of the high mortality and morbidity rates associated with ARF and the fact that younger African American patients with CA-ARF were more likely to die than their older counterparts, we recommend that renal failure awareness be incorporated into community-based health educational programs in African American populations.