Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome: Late Renal Injury and Changing Incidence—A Single Centre Experience in Canada

Aims . To assess trends in the incidence of pediatric diarrhea-associated hemolytic uremic syndrome (D + HUS) and document long-term renal sequelae. Methods . We conducted a retrospective cohort study of children with D + HUS admitted to a tertiary care pediatric hospital in Montreal, Canada, from 1976 to 2010. In 2010, we recontacted patients admitted before 2000. Results . Of 337 cases, median age at presentation was 3.01 years (range 0.4–14). Yearly incidence peaked in 1988 and 1994-95, returning to near-1977 levels since 2003. Twelve patients (3.6%) died and 19 (5.6%) experienced long-term renal failure. Almost half (47%) The patients required dialysis. Need for dialysis was the best predictor of renal sequelae, accounting for 100% of severe complications. Of children followed ≥1 year ( n = 199, mean follow-up 8.20 ± 6.78 years), 19 had severe and 18 mild-to-moderate kidney injury, a total sequelae rate, of 18.6%. Ten years or more after-HUS ( n = 85, mean follow-up 15.4 ± 5.32 years), 8 (9.4%) patients demonstrated serious complications and 22 (25.9%) mild-to-moderate, including 14 (16%) microalbuminuria: total sequelae, 35.3%. Conclusions . Patients with D + HUS should be monitored at least 5 years, including microalbuminuria testing, especially if dialysis was required. The cause of the declining incidence of D + HUS is elusive. However, conceivably, improved public health education may have played an important role in the prevention of food-borne disease.