Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Regional Citrate Versus Systemic Heparin Anticoagulation for Super High-flux Continuous Hemodialysis in Septic Shock: Effect on Middle Molecular Weight Molecules Clearances
Brief Summary: Sepsis is responsible for 50% of all acute kidney injury (AKI) in intensive care units (ICUs), contributing greatly to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). Special types of continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRT) have been proposed as adjuvant therapies for septic shock due to their ability to remove middle molecular weight molecules such as inflammatory mediators involved in MODS pathophysiology. These therapies are called extracorporeal " blood purification " therapies.

When CRRT is used, an anticoagulation is required to prevent clotting of the extracorporeal circuit, possibly causing bleeding in selected patients. Many anticoagulation strategies have been proposed and the most commonly used in 2013 is still unfractionated heparin. Regional citrate anticoagulation (RCA) is an interesting alternative as it dramatically decreases the bleeding risk.

The investigators hypothesize that the use of citrate with Super High Flux Continuous Veno-Venus Hemodialysis (SHF-CVVHD) would be highly beneficial over time by preserving the filter effectiveness via limiting protein adhesion (which subsequently reduces filter pore sizes (protein cake)), as compared to heparin. Consequently, higher clearances of the inflammatory mediators could be maintained over time with citrate as compared to heparin anticoagulation. In other words, for the same duration of filter use, middle molecular weight molecules and cytokines clearances would be greater with citrate as compared to heparin. To test this hypothesis, the investigators will perform a clinical randomized controlled trial which aim would be to compare middle molecular weight molecules and cytokines clearances in SHF-CVVHD using RCA versus systemic heparin anticoagulation in septic patients with AKI.


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* Need for hemodialysis in the ICU for at least one treatment
* No prior hemodialysis treatment in the ICU except continuous renal replacement therapy

Exclusion Criteria:

* Need for systemic anticoagulation with unfractionated or fractionated heparin, oral anticoagulants or intravenous anti-aggregants for other reasons
* Need for continued thrombolysis therapy within the 6 hours before inclusion
* Need for continued treatment with activated protein C (drotrecogin alfa) within the 12 hours before inclusion
* Need for continued treatment with intravenous anti-aggregants (abciximab, eptifabide) within 12 hours before inclusion
* Liver failure (acute and acute-on-chronic)
* Confirmed or suspected Heparin Induced Thrombocytopenia (HIT)
* Heparin allergies
* Severe uncorrected hypocalcemia (ionized calcium \< 0,8 mmol/l)
* Refusal of informed consent
B: Inclusion Criteria:

* Male or female critically ill patients over the age of 18 years old
* Acute Kidney Injury requiring CRRT defined using the Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss, End-stage renal disease (RIFLE) classification with criterion I or worse.
* Septic shock as defined by the American College of Chest Physicians/Society of Critical Care Medicine Consensus Conference.
* Written informed consent obtained from the patient or a patient's legal representative
* Patient patient's legal representative able to agree to patient's enrollment in the study with informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Pregnancy
* Participation in another research study protocol
* Known heparin induced thrombopenia or contraindication to heparin
* Pre-existing chronic renal failure on chronic dialysis
* Therapeutic anticoagulation with heparin for another reason (e.g. chonic arrhythmia)
* Severe liver failure (15% prothrombin time)
C: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Patient must be receiving medical care in an intensive care unit (ICU) (e.g., medical ICU, surgical ICU, cardiothoracic ICU, Trauma ICU, Mixed ICU, other).
2. Adult patients with AKI or other serious conditions who require treatment with CRRT.
3. Patients are expected to remain in the ICU and on CRRT for at least 72 hours after randomization.
4. Patients already receiving standard-of-care CRRT must be randomized within 24 hours of initiation of their standard-of-care CRRT.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Patients requiring systemic anticoagulation with antithrombotic agents for reasons other than CRRT. The exception is patients receiving subcutaneous heparin for deep vein thrombosis prophylaxis according to institutional practice or patients on aspirin may be enrolled.
2. Patients in whom citrate anticoagulation is contraindicated such as patients with a known allergy to citrate or who have experienced adverse events associated with citrate products including patients with a prior history of citrate toxicity or patients with uncorrected severe hypocalcemia (whether in the context of current citrate administration or due to the underlying disease state).
3. Patients who are not candidates for CRRT.
4. Patients who are receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) therapy.
5. Patients with severe coagulopathy \[i.e., platelets \< 30,000/mm3, international normalized ratio (INR) \> 2, partial thromboplastin time (PTT) \> 50 seconds\] including severe thrombocytopenia (platelets \< 30,000/mm3), HIT (heparin induced thrombocytopenia), ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura), and TTP (thrombotic thrombocytopenia purpura) should not be enrolled in the trial.
6. Patients with fulminant acute liver failure or acute on chronic liver failure as documented by a Child-Pugh Liver Failure Score \> 10.
7. Patients with refractory shock associated persistent, worsening with lactic acidosis (lactate \> 4 mmol/L). However, patients with improving subsequent serum lactate levels may be enrolled.
8. Patients unlikely to survive at least 72 hours.
9. Female patients who are pregnant, lactating, or planning to become pregnant during the study period.
10. Patients who are currently participating in another interventional clinical study.
11. Patients with a medical condition that may interfere with the study objectives.
D: Inclusion Criteria:

* Acute renal failure clinically consistent with a diagnosis of acute tubular necrosis
* Plan for renal replacement therapy by clinical team
* Receiving care in a critical care unit
* One non-renal organ failure or sepsis
* Age 18 or older
* Patient or surrogate provides informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Baseline serum creatinine \> 2 mg/dL (177 mol/L) in males, \> 1.5 mg/dL (133 mol/L) in females
* Acute renal failure clinically believed to be due to an etiology other than acute tubular necrosis
* More than 72 hours since meeting both of the following conditions:

  1. Fulfillment of the definition of ARF; and
  2. BUN \> 100 mg/dL (36 mmol/L)
* More than 1 hemodialysis treatment or more than 24 hours since starting continuous renal replacement therapy
* Prior kidney transplant
* Pregnancy
* Prisoner
* Weight \> 128.5 kg
* Non-candidacy for renal replacement therapy
* Moribund state
* Patient not expected to survive 28 days because of underlying terminal chronic medical condition
* Comfort-measures-only status
* Participation in a concurrent interventional study
* Patient/surrogate refusal
* Physician refusal

Answer: B