A researcher at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital has found that the accumulation of acid-inducing substances in the body can increase the risk of acute renal damage and even death.
The kidney controls the balance between acid and base so that a person’s body maintains its neutral state, and managing the acid group is essential for body cell metabolism. However, when metabolic substances that cause acidification accumulate in the body due to abnormal acid-base control, it can cause metabolic acidosis, which adversely affects organs.
Metabolic acidosis is also known to aggravate chronic kidney disease, in which the function of the kidneys slowly deteriorates.
The team, led by Professor Kim Sae-joong of the department of nephrology, designed a study to confirm the association of metabolic acidosis and acute renal damage.
To assess the extent of renal impairment and mortality, Professor Kim used the data of 17,320 patient admitted to the hospital in 2013. Kim’s team separated the patients on whether or not they had metabolic acidosis at the time of admission.
Of the 17,320 patients, 4,488 had metabolic acidosis at the time of admission. The team found that patients with metabolic acidosis had 1.57 times higher risk of acute renal failure. The results further demonstrated that the higher the degree of acidosis, the greater the risk of acute renal failure.
The risk of death also increased in patients with metabolic acidosis. The 90-day mortality rate was 1.3 times higher, while the one-year mortality rate was 1.31 times higher than that of regular patients.
The team concluded that patients suffering from metabolic acidosis and acute renal failure together showed a maximum of 15 times higher risk of death compared to regular patients.
“Hospitals can confirm patient's prognosis and risk of death in advance by taking all of the various abnormal signals related to renal function into consideration and taking a more appropriate measure,” Professor Kim said.
The results of the study were published in the Scientific Reports.