Plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin as a predictive biomarker for the detection of acute kidney injury in adult poisoning

AbstractContext: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious complication in intoxicated patients. Recently, a new biomarker - neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) - was used to predict AKI in patients who were critically ill or had sepsis. Objective: To evaluate the utility of plasma NGAL as an early predictor of AKI in adults with acute poisoning. Materials and methods: This retrospective, observational, cohort study was conducted between December 2013 and November 2014. A total of 157 consecutive adult patients who presented to the emergency department (Level 1 regional center) of Kyungpook National University Hospital, a tertiary teaching hospital in Daegu, Korea, within 24 h of poisoning were included. Initial plasma NGAL levels and laboratory parameters were concurrently measured upon hospital arrival. AKI was defined according to Acute Kidney Injury Network criteria. Development of AKI was predicted using plasma NGAL levels and by analyzing the area under the receiver operating characterist...