Patients who sustain an acute kidney injury during a hospital stay due to a heart or lung condition face the risk of reduced mental acuity — even years later. This finding emerged in a study published this month in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
The UW Medicine-led study followed 1,538 patients for three years. Participants underwent cognitive tests at intervals of three, 12 and 36 months after their hospitalizations.
“For the last two or three decades, there has been a growing recognition and concern of the long-term physical and cognitive consequences after hospitalization,” said lead author Dr. Pavan Bhatraju, a UW Medicine pulmonologist and critical-care specialist.
“Caring for patients in the hospital, we have noticed some patients have declines in cognitive function after leaving the hospital and we were wondering why this happens,” he said.
