Kidney injury markers
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is an abrupt loss of kidney function that develops within a short period. A measurable decrease in urine output may be a sign for the deterioration of kidney function.Several alternative markers has been proposed (such as NGAL, cystatin C). Take NGAL as example, its level is low in healthy people but will be robustly induced in the kidney after AKI and can be detected within 2 hours in both blood and urine. It can be used for early diagnosis of AKI, risk stratification, prediction of clinical outcomes, monitor resonse to therapy.