ABSTRACT
To the clinician the term ‘acute renal failure’ signifies an abrupt deterioration in renal function sufficient to result in a significant elevation in blood of the concentration of waste products such as urea and creatinine. Strictly the term signifies that such deterioration results from disordered functioning of the kidneys themselves rather than from pre-renal or post-renal factors. At first presentation it may be unclear whether a patient has pre-renal, renal or postrenal uraemia.
