During intensive
therapy of chronic
heart failure (CHF) patients with marked fluid retention using high doses of i.v.
furosemide the additional effect of agents which might exert osmotic attraction of interstitial fluids has been proposed. They are thought to impede the impairment of renal blood supply and glomerular filtration rate, which may be caused by a combined action of cardiac preload acute reduction,
hypotension and neurohormonal activation.We therefore assessed in CHF patients with NYHA class III and BNP values from 900 to 1500 pg/ml, who were treated with i.v.
furosemide, the predictors of iatrogenic short term
creatinine impairment by means of a case-control observational study from two centers. Patients with CHF had been treated for 6-8 days with intravenous
loop diuretics alone or with an additional i.v. administration of other agents (plasma expanders,
albumin,
mannitol, inotropic support etc.). A rise in serum
creatinine ≥ 25% of the basal value was considered as renal impairment.A total of 15 cases and 38 controls were enrolled. At univariate analysis, serum
creatinine basal value ≥ 2.2 mg/dl, absence of
hypertonic saline solution (HSS) in the therapeutic protocol, hyposodic diet and refractory oligoanuria were associated with an increased risk of worsening renal function precipitated by i.v.
diuretic therapy. At multivariate analysis as a predictor of
loop diuretic-related renal function impairment, we found a serum
creatinine ≥ 2.2 mg/dl at baseline (OR: 63.33, 95% CI: 3.68-1088.73, p=0.0043) and the absence of HSS in the therapeutic regimen (OR: 25.0461, 95% CI: 2.07-302.53, p=0.0113). Moreover, in multivariate analysis
ascites had some predictive value of renal deterioration (OR: 13.28, 95% CI: 1.0055-175.41, p=0,0495).