Haemolysis and Acute Kidney Injury in paediatric cardiac sUrgery v1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Investigation of haemolysis-induced acute kidney injury in children following cardiac bypass procedures
IRAS ID
357521
Contact name
Stephen McWilliam
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Alder Hey Children's Hospital
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 6 months, days
Research summary
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious condition associated with an increased risk of mortality, requirement for kidney-replacement therapy and mechanical ventilation as well as longer inpatient stay in the intensive care unit (ICU). One of the major causes of AKI is cardiac surgery which utilises cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). The exact mechanism of cardiac surgery-associated AKI is poorly understood. The CPB machine causes damage to red blood cells which allows their contents to leak into the blood, namely haemoglobin, this is called haemolysis. Cell-free haemoglobin (cfHb) is known to inflict injury on the kidneys and so could be a key contributor to AKI after surgery.
We want to investigate the mechanism through which cfHb causes injury to the cells of the kidney using blood and urine samples from children who have cardiac surgery on CPB. These samples will be applied to human kidney cell model in the laboratory. We will test the levels of cfHb in these samples and see if this correlates with the development of AKI after surgery and also the level of injury measured in the kidney cell model.
This study will recruit children who are scheduled to have cardiac surgery on CPB at Alder Hey Children's Hospital. At their pre-operative appointment, the child and their carers will be given information about the study. On admission to the hospital for surgery, written consent will be taken for the collection of both blood and urine samples at the beginning and end of cardiopulmonary bypass. We aim to recruit 50 patients within 6 months.
By establishing if there is a relationship between levels of cfHb in the blood and kidney injury and gaining a deeper understanding of how this injury is caused, we can identify potential therapeutics which can protect the cells of the kidney from injury during haemolysis.REC name
HSC REC B
REC reference
25/NI/0171
Date of REC Opinion
23 Dec 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion