Management of kidney injury in critically ill patients with earthquake-induced crush syndrome: A case series of 18 patients.

UNLABELLED: İNTRODUCTION: It was aimed primarily to analyze the development of acute kidney injury (AKI) and treatment management in critically ill patients who developed rhabdomyolysis due to earthquake-related crush syndrome.

METHODS: We evaluated 18 patients with crush syndrome who were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) after the great earthquake in February 2023 in Turkey.

RESULTS: AKI occurred in 83% (n:15) of these patients after ICU admission (AKI-1; 16.6% [n:3], AKI-2; 16.6% [n:3], and AKI-3; 50% [n:9]). While the majority of patients who developed crush syndrome were treated with high volume intravenous hydration, only 33% (n:6) of all patients required renal replacement therapy. All patients who developed AKI had complete recovery in renal functions at the end of 2 months.

CONCLUSION: There is no need for routine renal replacement therapy in the treatment of AKI, which is frequently seen in patients with crush syndrome. Most can be treated with high volumes of intravenous fluid.