Four Cases of Acute Kidney Injury Requiring Dialysis in Ultramarathoners
Andrew Pasternak, Cristin Newkirk-Thompson, John H. Howard, John Onate, Tamara Hew‐Butler
Abstract
Transient acute kidney injury (AKI) following ultraendurance footraces is a common biochemical diagnosis. However, severe AKI requiring renal replacement therapy is uncommon in ultramarathoners. We report 4 runners (3 men; mean age, 44 ± 3 y) who required prolonged (10–42 d) dialysis following the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run over a 3-y span (0.38% of starters). The maximum ambient temperatures on the race day ranged from 36.6° to 38.3°C. The runners presented to local hospitals 17 to 32 h after running, with laboratories confirming rhabdomyolysis, hyponatremia (mean serum sodium concentration, 127±2 mmol⋅L -1 ), and AKI (mean serum creatinine concentration, 8.5±2 mg⋅dL -1 ). The case-cluster report highlights the potential synergistic effects of high ambient temperatures, muscle damage, and electrolyte imbalance on protracted renal dysfunction in ultramarathoners competing in a warming world.