Evaluation of the Effect of Statins on Post-Surgical Patients with Acute Kidney Injury.

INTRODUCTION

Acute kidney injury is the sudden and almost complete loss of renal function with reduced glomerular filtration rate, and it occurs whenever the kidneys are unable to excrete metabolic waste products.

METHOD

This randomized double-blinded clinical trial was performed in an intensive care unit (ICU) of a university educational hospital. After randomization with a random assigning table of numbers, patients were divided into two groups: an intervention group and a control group. The patients' daily blood urea nitrogen and creatinine levels were measured and changes were recorded. The statin group received a tablet of atorvastatin 40 mg daily (Abidi Pharmacy Production). Moreover, patients' baseline vital signs and changes in serum blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, mechanical ventilation requirement, need for dialysis, ICU stays, and mortality were recorded in both groups. SPSS version 20 software was used for data analysis. P value <0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

The mean intubation time for the intervention and control groups was 4.44±1.8 and 3.46±2.02, respectively, and the mean mechanical ventilation time was 2.14±2.15 and 2.34±2.07 days, respectively. The mean ICU stay was 4.91±3.3 days for the intervention group and 4.67±2.67 days for the control group. Throughout the study duration, the mean dialysis requirement frequency was 4.66±1.2 times in the intervention group and 5.54 ±1.75 times in the control group. Two patients in the intervention group and three patients in the control group died. There was no statistically significant difference in mortality between the two groups (P >0.05).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

The effects of statins on the different stages of acute kidney injury and its outcomes are yet challengeable, so we recommend conducting further studies with larger sample sizes.