Factors affecting dialysis duration in children with Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli –associated hemolytic uremic syndrome

Background Predicting disease severity can be informative for management of HUS. Dialysis requirement, volume depletion, elevated white blood cell counts, very young age, and use of antimotility agents are known factors associated with severe HUS. Methods A retrospective cohort analysis was performed to identify factors associated with dialysis duration using electronic medical record and chart review of 76 children ≤ 18 years of age at presentation with STEC-HUS identified through billing data from July 2008 to April 2020 at James Whitcomb Riley Hospital for Children, Indiana University, Indiana. Results Novel findings associated with prolonged dialysis duration were age ≥ 6 years old at presentation ( p = 0.041) and lack of drop in platelets below 60,000/mm 3 anytime during the illness ( p = 0.015). In addition, children with NSAID exposure trended longer on dialysis: 15 days with vs. 10 days without ( p = 0.117). Known risk factors for severe disease including elevated peak white blood cell (WBC) count and higher hematocrit at presentation were also associated with longer dialysis duration: children with peak WBC > 20,000/mm 3 were on dialysis for 15 vs. 9.5 days ( p = 0.002) and in children on dialysis ≥ 14 days hematocrit at presentation was 29.6% vs. 24.2% ( p = 0.03). Children requiring dialysis for 20 days or longer were more likely to be on anti-hypertensive medications ( p = 0.025) and have chronic kidney disease at 12-month follow up ( p = 0.044). Conclusions Age ≥ 6, elevated WBC count > 20,000/mm 3 , higher hematocrit at presentation, lack of drop in platelets to < 60,000/mm 3 , and possibly NSAID exposure during illness are associated with longer dialysis duration in STEC-HUS. Graphical abstract A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information