Acute Renal Failure in Pregnancy

Abstract

Acute renal failure (ARF) has become a very rare complication of pregnancy. In the 1960s, pregnancy-related ARF represented approximately 20 to 40% of all cases of ARF. Since 1970, its incidence in industrialized countries has decreased dramatically because of the virtual disappearance of septic abortion and better prenatal care. At the National Maternity Hospital, Dublin, from 1961 to 1970, 20 cases of ARF occurred among 57,568 delivered women whereas from 1971 to 1980, only 4 cases were observed among 83,713 deliveries. At the same maternity hospital, during the same two periods, the number of cases of abruptio placentae and renal cortical necrosis went from 1,091 to 630 and from 6 to 1, respectively^l. These data reflect the low incidence of pregnancy-related ARF. In other countries, however, the incidence of severe ARF in pregnancy is still high, for instance in northern India². At the Mustapha Hospital, Algiers, pregnancy-related ARF represented approximately 20% of all causes of ARF between 1979 and 1983, and this percentage is similar to that found from 1966 to 1978 (Drs. A.Merouani and M. Drif, personal oommunication).