This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Diagnostic criteria

Authoring team

Previously Hepatorenal syndrome was classified into two clinical types:

  • type 1
    • defined as rapid reduction of renal function by doubling of initial serum creatinine to a concentration of at least 2.5 mg/dL or a 50% reduction in less than two weeks in the initial 24 hour creatinine clearance to below 20 mL/min, or,
  • type 2
    • which renal failure progression did not meet the criteria for type I

The International Club of Ascites (ICA) updated the definition of hepatorenal syndrome (HRS) type 1 which is now termed HRS-AKI (acute kidney injury).

AKI is a broad clinical syndrome encompassing various aetiologies that cause either direct injury to the kidney (structural injury) or an acute impairment of function (functional injury)

The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) guidelines define AKI as any of the following:

1) increase in sCr by >=0.3mg/dl (>=26.5μmol/L) within 48h; or

2) increase in sCr to >=1.5x baseline, which is known or presumed to have occurred within the prior 7days; or 3) urine volume <0.5ml/kg/h for 6h

New diagnostic criteria for HRS-AKI

Diagnostic criteria
• Cirrhosis; acute liver failure; acute-on-chronic liver failure


• Increase in serum creatinine >=0.3 mg/dl within 48 h or >=50% from baseline value according
to ICA consensus document

and/or

Urinary output <=0.5 ml/kg B.W. >=6 h*


• No full or partial response, according to the ICA consensus document20, after at least 2 days of diuretic withdrawal and volume expansion with albumin. The recommended dose of albumin is 1 g/kg of body weight per day to a maximum of 100 g/day


• Absence of shock


• No current or recent treatment with nephrotoxic drugs


• Absence of parenchymal disease as indicated by proteinuria >500 mg/day, microhaematuria

(>50 red blood cells per high power field), urinary injury biomarkers (if available) and/or abnormal renal ultrasonography**.


Suggestion of renal vasoconstriction with FENa of <0.2% (with levels <0.1% being highly
predictive)

*The evaluation of this parameter requires a urinary catheter. **This criterion would not be included in cases of known pre-existing structural chronic kidney disease (e.g. diabetic or hypertensive nephropathy). AKI, acute kidney injury; FENa, fractional excretion of sodium; HRS, hepatorenal syndrome; ICA, International Club of Ascites

If functional kidney injury in patients with cirrhosis that does not meet the criteria for HRS-AKI then this is termed

  • HRS-NAKI (that is, non-AKI)
    • defined by estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) rather than serum creatinine
    • NAKI is sudivided into:
      • HRS acute kidney disease (HRS-AKD) if the eGFR is less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 for less than three months, or,
      • HRS chronic kidney disease (HRS-CKD) if the eGFR is less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m2 for more than three month

New classification of hepatorenal syndrome (1):

HRS-1 is now HRS-AKI

HRS1 > HRS-AKI

a) Absolute increase in sCr >=0.3 mg/dl within 48 h
and/or
b) Urinary output <= 0.5 ml/kg B.W. >=6 h*
or
c) Percent increase in sCr >=50% using the last available value of outpatient sCr within 3 months as the baseline value


HRS-2 is now HRS-NAKI (which has subclassifications HRS-AKD and HRS-CKD)

HRS-AKD

a) eGFR <60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 for <3 months in the absence of other (structural) causes
b) Percent increase in sCr <50% using the last available value of outpatient sCr within 3 months as the baseline value

HRS-CKD

a) eGFR <60 ml/min per 1.73 m2 for >=3 months in the absence of other (structural) causes

AKD, acute kidney disease; AKI, acute kidney injury; CKD, chronic kidney disease; eGFR, estimated glomerular filtration rate; HRS, hepatorenal syndrome; sCr, serum
creatinine.
* the evaluation of this parameter requires a urinary catheter.

Reference:

  • Angeli P, Garcia-Tsao G, Nadim MK, Parikh CR. News in pathophysiology, definition and classification of hepatorenal syndrome: A step beyond the International Club of Ascites (ICA) consensus document. J Hepatol 2019;71:811-22. doi:10.1016/j. jhep.2019.07.002.
  • EASL Clinical Practice Guidelines for the management of patients with decompensated cirrhosis. J Hepatol. 2018; 69: 406–460.
  • Simonetto DA et al. Hepatorenal syndrome: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management. BMJ 2020;370:m2687http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m2687
  • Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (2003), 41 (7), 49-52.

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.