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More than one third of coronavirus patients across 13 of Northwell Health’s New York hospitals developed acute kidney injury, or AKI, the company announced Thursday.

According to the CDC, AKI is “a rapid decline in kidney function that can lead to long-term kidney damage and death.” The condition “causes a build-up of waste products” in the blood and makes it difficult for the kidneys to keep the right balance of fluid in the body, as noted by the National Kidney Foundation.

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Researchers at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research analyzed electronic health records of 5,449 hospitalized coronavirus patients between March 1 and April 5, finding 36.6 percent, or 1,993, of patients developed AKI.

When the study concluded, 39 percent of AKI patients were still hospitalized, while 26 percent had been discharged and 35 percent had died.

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“Working amidst the COVID-19 epicenter was an experience we will never forget. Nephrologists and the dialysis staff were on the front lines of this battle trying to help every patient we could,” said Kenar D. Jhaveri, MD, a researcher at the Feinstein Institutes and corresponding author of the paper. “We hope to learn more about the COVID-19 related AKI in the coming weeks, and that by sharing what we have learned from our patients, other doctors and their patients can benefit.”

The study notes most cases of AKI developed early in hospitalization, with 37 percent of patients arriving with AKI or developing it within 24 hours, according to a Northwell Health press release.

Just over 5 percent of all patients required kidney dialysis, which translates to 14.3 percent of patients with AKI.

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The study also noted a “substantial” link between respiratory failure and AKI. Of patients who required mechanical ventilation, researchers found 89.9 percent developed AKI as opposed to 21.7 percent in non-ventilated patients.

Patients on mechanical ventilation who developed AKI also showed an estimated 23 percent greater need of dialysis therapy compared to non-ventilated patients.

Dr. Kevin Tracey, Feinstein Institutes president and CEO, said Jhaveri’s findings were based on the largest defined cohort of hospitalized coronavirus patients to date.

The data was published in Kidney International.