Authors

Abed Ricky H. Sitompul¹*, Tetty Yuniati², Fiva Aprilia Kadi², Aris Primadi², Dwi Prasetyo², Ahmedz Widiasta², Ekawati L. Haksari3, Harry G. Nugraha4 and Antony A. Adibrata5

Affiliations

¹Neonatology Sub-Specialist Program, Department of Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Padjadjaran University, Bandung, Indonesia, ²Department of Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Padjadjaran University/Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Bandung, Indonesia, ³Department of Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, Gadjah Mada University, Sardjito General Hospital, Yogyakarta, Indonesia, ⁴Department of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Padjadjaran University/Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Bandung, Indonesia, ⁵Faculty of Medicine, Padjadjaran University, Bandung, Indonesia

Background

• Acute kidney injury (AKI) predicts mortality in neonates, but serum creatinine rises only after kidney function is already lost.

• Late-onset neonatal sepsis (LONS) is a common trigger of AKI.

Methods

• Single-center prospective study in the NICU (July–August 2025) with 36 preterm neonates with probable LONS.

• Compared the renal resistive index (RRI) and nSOFA scores for predicting AKI risk, using the STARZ score for risk stratification.

Key Results

• Median RRI and STARZ scores rose during the course of LONS.

• Birth weight below 1,357 g and congenital heart disease were significant risk factors.

• An nSOFA score above 3 on day 7 was a strong independent predictor of high-risk AKI (OR 10.01).

Discussion & Conclusion

• Serial nSOFA monitoring may offer a practical way to identify AKI risk early in preterm neonates with LONS.

• These findings come from a small single-center study.

Related SDGs

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being – Protecting the health of premature newborns

Journal Information

Journal: Frontiers in Nephrology

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fneph.2026.1734812