Changing serum creatinine in the detection of acute renal failure and recovery following radiocontrast studies among acutely ill inpatients: Reviewing insights regarding renal functional reserve gained by large-data analysis

A rise in serum creatinine (SCr) is widely used for the detection and definition of evolving acute kidney injury (AKI). Yet, it takes time for SCr to re-adjust in response to changes in glomerular filtration rate (GFR), and subtle transient changes in GFR may remain concealed. Additionally, it cannot differentiate altered glomerular hemodynamics and pre-renal failure from true renal tissue injury, necessitating additional clinical and laboratory diagnostic tools.