Acute Kidney Injury following Cardiac Surgery

The primary goal of this chapter is to provide the reader with an overview of basic renal physiology and function and to review the identification, pathogenesis, and treatment of acute kidney injury following cardiac surgery. Particular focus will be directed toward the diagnostic criteria for acute kidney injury, short- and long-term impacts on patient outcomes, role of novel biomarkers, mechanisms of acute renal injury, general management principles, preventative strategies, and the influence of anesthetic and surgical techniques on its development. The content of this chapter will serve to underscore a particularly harmful but likely underappreciated problem affecting patients in the cardiothoracic critical care setting.