ABSTRACT
About a quarter of critically ill patients develop acute kidney injury (AKI), usually from systemic hypotension (cardiovascular failure); about 4 per cent of ICU patients need renal replacement therapy (Uchino et al., 2007). While renal units mainly use intermittent haemodialysis for renal replacement therapy, this is unsuitable for critically ill, hypotensive patients. Continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRTs) avoid aggressive reductions in blood pressure, so continuous venovenous haemofiltration/haemodiafiltration (CVVH/CVVHD) is the main CRRT used in ICUs.
