The effectiveness of continuous renal replacement therapy in critical COVID-19 patients with cytokine release syndrome: a retrospective, multicenter, descriptive study from Wuhan, China

Xiang, Huiling; Song, Bin; Zhang, Yuanyuan; Zhang, Jianduan; Xiong, Jing

Background: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread rapidly since 2019. Approximately 15% of the patients will develop severe complications such as multiple organ disease syndrome related to cytokine release syndrome (CRS). Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) can remove inflammatory cytokines through filtration or adsorption. We evaluated the effectiveness of CRRT in COVID-19 patients with CRS. Methods: This retrospective, multicenter, descriptive study included 83 patients with CRS from three hospitals in Wuhan. Results: In COVID-19 patients with CRS, the fatality rate was even higher in CRRT group (P=0.005). However, inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein, neutrophil counts, and D-dimer decreased after CRRT (P<0.05). Results of Lasso model showed that tracheotomy (β -1.31) and convalescent plasma (β -1.41) were the protective factors. In contrast, CRRT (β 1.07), respiratory failure (β 1.61), consolidation on lung CT (β 0.48), acute kidney injury (AKI) (β 0.47), and elevated neutrophil count (β 0.02) were the risk factors for death. Conclusions: Our results showed that although CRRT significantly reduced the inflammation, it did not decrease the fatality rate of patients with CRS. Therefore, the choice of CRRT indication, dialysis time and dialysis mode should be more careful and accurate in COVID-19 patients with CRS.