INTRODUCTION: Nephrotoxic acute renal failure (ARF) is a frequent and important cause of morbidity and mortality. OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence, clinical course, and outcome of nephrotoxic ARF. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Historical cohort carried out in a tertiary school hospital from February to November, 1997. Patients over 12 years of age, diagnosed with ARF, and followed up by a team of nephrologists were included. The exclusion criteria were as follows: renal transplantation, chronic renal failure, dialysis due to exogenous poisoning, and those transferred to hospital during treatment. RESULTS: Of the 234 patients followed up, 12% had nephrotoxic ARF and 24% multifactorial ARF associated with the use of nephrotoxic drugs. The most prevalent comorbidities were as follows: hypertension, hepatopathy, neoplasias, congestive heart failure, and diabetes mellitus. Fifteen percent of the patients required dialysis, and the most commonly used type was continuous venovenous hemodialysis; 42% of the patients were oliguric; 44.7% died; and 33% recovered renal function. The most prevalent nephrotoxic drugs were antibiotics, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and radiographical contrast media. In order of frequency, the nephrotoxic drugs were as follows: vancomycin, aminoglycosides, acyclovir, chemotherapy agents, and radiographical contrast media. In multivariate analysis, hepatopathy was the only statistically significant variable (p = 0.03, CI = 1.08 to 6.49). The comparison of non-nephrotoxic and nephrotoxic ARF showed an increase in mortality proportional to the length of hospitalization. CONCLUSION: Nephrotoxic ARF is common, serious, and must be continuously monitored both in hospital and on an outpatient basis.
acute renal failure; nephrotoxic; epidemiology
