AUTHOR=Hsiao Chiu-Ying , Pan Heng-Chih , Wu Vin-Cent , Su Ching-Chun , Yeh Tzu-Hsuan , Chuang Min-Hsiang , Tu Kuan-Chieh , Wang Hsien-Yi , Kan Wei-Chih , Yang Chun-Chi , Chen Jui-Yi 

TITLE=Acute kidney injury in patients with COVID-19 compared to those with influenza: a systematic review and meta-analysis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2023.1252990

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2023.1252990

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=<sec id="sec1"><title>Background</title><p>COVID-19 and influenza can both lead to acute kidney injury (AKI) as a common complication. However, no meta-analysis has been conducted to directly compare the incidence of AKI between hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and influenza. The objective of our study aims to investigate the incidence and outcomes of AKI among hospitalized patients between these two groups.</p></sec><sec id="sec2"><title>Materials and methods</title><p>A systematic search of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases was conducted from December 2019 to August 2023 to identify studies examining AKI and clinical outcomes among hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and influenza. The primary outcome of interest was the incidence of AKI, while secondary outcomes included in-hospital mortality, recovery from AKI, hospital and ICU stay duration. The quality of evidence was evaluated using Cochrane and GRADE methods.</p></sec><sec id="sec3"><title>Results</title><p>Twelve retrospective cohort studies, involving 17,618 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and influenza, were analyzed. COVID-19 patients showed higher AKI incidence (29.37% vs. 20.98%, OR: 1.67, 95% CI 1.56–1.80, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, I<sup>2</sup> = 92.42%), and in-hospital mortality (30.95% vs. 5.51%, OR: 8.16, 95% CI 6.17–10.80, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, I<sup>2</sup> = 84.92%) compared to influenza patients with AKI. Recovery from AKI was lower in COVID-19 patients (57.02% vs., 80.23%, OR: 0.33, 95% CI 0.27–0.40, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, I<sup>2</sup> = 85.17%). COVID-19 patients also had a longer hospital stay (SMD: 0.69, 95% CI 0.65–0.72, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, I<sup>2</sup> = 98.94%) and longer ICU stay (SMD: 0.61, 95% CI 0.50–0.73, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, I<sup>2</sup> = 94.80%) than influenza patients. In our study, evidence quality was high (NOS score 7–9), with low certainty for AKI incidence and moderate certainty for recovery form AKI by GRADE assessment.</p></sec><sec id="sec4"><title>Conclusion</title><p>COVID-19 patients had higher risk of developing AKI, experiencing in-hospital mortality, and enduring prolonged hospital/ICU stays in comparison to influenza patients. Additionally, the likelihood of AKI recovery was lower among COVID-19 patients.</p></sec>