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Articles and journal scans about Kidneys/fluids
Article
April 2017
Citrate anticoagulation during CRRT for acute kidney injury
This article discusses the use of citrate anticoagulation during continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRTs) which are prescribed for patients with severe acute kidney injury (AKI). Where heparin was traditionally the anticoagulant of choice for CRRT, regional citrate anticoagulation (RCA) has now emerged as the...
Electrolytes
Kidneys/fluids
Blood gases/acid-base
Article
October 2016
Urea and creatinine concentration, the urea:creatinine ratio
This second of two articles on understanding the clinical value of measuring urea concentration explores the clinical value of simultaneous measurement of urea and creatinine and calculating the urea:creatinine ratio. The article discusses the causes of increased and decreased ratio as well as the clinical application ...
Creatinine/urea
Kidneys/fluids
Article
August 2016
Urea and the clinical value of measuring blood urea concentration
This first of two articles on understanding the clinical value of measuring urea concentration dives into the physiological topics, such as urea production and renal processing of urea as well as the causes of increased and reduced urea concentration.
Kidney disease is associated with reduced urea excretion and...
Creatinine/urea
Kidneys/fluids
Journal Scan
January 2016
Role of the kidneys in maintaining normal blood pH
The maintenance of blood pH within normal limits (7.35-7.45), called acid-base homeostasis, is a complex synergy involving three organs (lungs, kidneys and brain) as well as chemical buffers in blood and blood cells (erythrocytes). This vital physiologic process is the subject of a recent expert review article,...
Blood gases/acid-base
Kidneys/fluids
Article
April 2015
Update on Procalcitonin Measurements
Reprinted from Ann Lab Med 2014 Sep; 34(4):263-73.
Procalcitonin (PCT) is used as a biomarker for the diagnosis of sepsis, severe sepsis and septic shock. At the same time, PCT has also been used to guide antibiotic therapy. This review outlines the main indications for PCT measurement and points out possible...
Infection/sepsis
PCT
CRP
Kidneys/fluids
Article
March 2015
Spurious sodium results (1) – pseudohyponatremia
Disturbance of sodium balance is a common occurrence among hospitalized patients that can, if not identified and treated, cause significant morbidity; severe disturbance is potentially lethal. So estimation of plasma sodium concentration is one of the most frequently requested blood tests.
Historically, plasma sodium ...
Electrolytes
Point-of-care testing
Glucose
Kidneys/fluids
Journal Scan
January 2015
Estimating glomerular filtration rate
Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is a parameter of prime clinical significance because it defines kidney function. All those with reduced kidney function, no matter what the cause, have reduced GFR, and GFR correlates well with disease severity. The most accurate assessment of GFR is thus valuable not only for early...
Kidneys/fluids
Creatinine/urea
Article
October 2014
Umbilical-cord blood gas analysis
The pH, base excess and pCO2 (acid-base status) of arterial blood flowing through the umbilical cord provides valuable objective evidence of the metabolic condition of neonates at the moment of birth; a notion that has assured a role for the blood gas analyzer in hospital delivery suites in cases of suspected fetal...
Blood gases/acid-base
Neonatology
Glucose
Lactate
Hemoglobins
Kidneys/fluids
Article
July 2014
The value of point-of-care testing in deteriorating ward patients
Point-of-care testing (POCT) for key laboratory variables may help clinicians assess the level of acuteness and the level of care necessary in the management of deteriorating ward patients.
We used a multibiomarker POCT panel including B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), D-dimer, myoglobin (Myo), creatine kinase MB...
Cardiac markers
Point-of-care testing
Coagulation/fibrinolysis
D-dimer
Troponins
Natriuretic peptide
Kidneys/fluids
Article
July 2013
How to use high-sensitivity cardiac troponin assays most effectively in clinical practice
Recently developed high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (cTn) assays can measure approximately 10 times lower concentrations with high precision (coefficient of variation, <10 % at the 99th percentile of the upper reference limit) than conventional assays, and can measure cTn concentrations in at least 50 % of a reference ...
Cardiac markers
Troponins
CRP
Natriuretic peptide
Kidneys/fluids