POCUS Evaluation in Acute Kidney Injury

Abstract

Acute kidney injury is a common clinical problem encountered in general internal medicine. The evaluation of acute kidney injury is mainly driven by the patient’s clinical history, physical exam and basic urinary/laboratory investigation. Point of care ultrasound (POCUS) may be a useful tool to help clinicians to narrow and/or prioritize differential diagnosis in patients presenting with acute kidney injury. Here we present a case of a 67-year old male presenting with dysuria, fevers, and flank pain along with elevation in serum creatinine who was admitted for acute kidney injury secondary to complicated urinary tract infection. Subsequent renal POCUS showed bilateral anechoic fluid collection within the renal sinus with dilated calyces suggestive of bilateral hydronephrosis most likely due to a new diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia. This case demonstrates the use of POCUS added valuable diagnostic information and therapeutic management for this patient presenting with acute kidney injury.

Keywords

• hydronephrosis, ultrasound, POCUS, renal colic