A Systematic Review of the Costs of Drug‐Associated Acute Kidney Injury and Potential Cost Savings with Nephrotoxin Stewardship Prevention Strategies

Abstract

There is a scarcity of information related to the financial impact of acute kidney injury (AKI), and even more so the economics of drug‐associated AKI (D‐AKI). Our goal was to provide a comprehensive summary of the economic burden of D‐AKI by evaluating the costs of D‐AKI compared to not developing AKI and cost savings associated with nephrotoxin stewardship approaches. Following the PRISMA guidelines, a literature search was conducted using PubMed to identify articles from database inception through November 2023. The main outcomes included AKI incidence, resource use, and cost of nephrotoxin stewardship programs/D‐AKI event or no event. Key findings were summarized based on whether the study compared the cost of D‐AKI vs. no AKI or identified potential cost savings associated with a nephrotoxin stewardship method to prevent D‐AKI or worsening D‐AKI. All costs were adjusted to USD2023. Twenty‐five studies met the inclusion criteria. Eight studies compared the cost of D‐AKI to no AKI. Total admission costs of patients who developed D‐AKI ranged from $47,696 to $173,569. Nineteen studies implemented nephrotoxin stewardship with 12 substituting a less nephrotoxic drug; five using therapeutic drug monitoring and two altering drug dosing to limit exposure. Overall, these prevention strategies ranged from $5,171 to $364,973 in total medical cost savings and $17 to $942 in total cost savings per patient‐day. The in‐hospital economic impact of D‐AKI is substantial. Implementing nephrotoxin stewardship strategies to reduce D‐AKI is associated with cost savings. Institutions should adopt strategic and efficient nephrotoxin stewardship programs to optimize patient care and reduce costs.