As a result, additional major and minor criteria have been developed to assist in the diagnosis of hepatorenal syndrome.The major criteria include liver disease with portal hypertension; kidney failure; the absence of shock, infection, recent treatment with medications that affect the function of the kidney (nephrotoxins), and fluid losses; the absence of sustained improvement in kidney function despite treatment with 1.5 litres of intravenous normal saline; the absence of proteinuria (protein in the urine); and, the absence of kidney disease or obstruction of kidney outflow as seen on ultrasound.The minor criteria are the following: a low urine volume (less than 500 mL (18 imp fl oz; 17 US fl oz) per day), low sodium concentration in the urine, a urine osmolality that is greater than that in the blood, the absence of red blood cells in the urine, and a serum sodium concentration of less than 130 mmol/L.Many other diseases of the kidney are associated with liver disease and must be excluded before making a diagnosis of hepatorenal syndrome. Individuals with pre-renal kidney failure do not have damage to the kidneys, but as in individuals with HRS, have kidney dysfunction due to decreased blood flow to the kidneys. Also, similarly to HRS, pre-renal kidney failure causes the formation of urine that has a very low sodium concentration. In contrast to HRS, however, pre-renal kidney failure usually responds to treatment with intravenous fluids, resulting in reduction in serum creatinine and increased excretion of sodium.
Hepatorenal syndrome (often abbreviated HRS) is a life-threatening medical condition that consists of rapid deterioration in kidney function in individuals with cirrhosis or fulminant liver failure. HRS is usually fatal unless a liver transplant is performed, although various treatments, such as dialysis, can prevent advancement of the condition. HRS can affect individuals with cirrhosis, severe alcoholic hepatitis, or liver failure, and usually occurs when liver function deteriorates rapidly because of a sudden insult such as an infection, bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract, or overuse of diuretic medications. HRS is a relatively common complication of cirrhosis, occurring in 18% of people within one year of their diagnosis, and in 39% within five years of their diagnosis. Deteriorating liver function is believed to cause changes in the circulation that supplies the intestines, altering blood flow and blood vessel tone in the kidneys. The kidney failure of HRS is a consequence of these changes in blood flow, rather than direct damage to the kidney. The diagnosis of hepatorenal syndrome is based on laboratory tests of individuals susceptible to the condition. Two forms of hepatorenal syndrome have been defined: Type 1 HRS entails a rapidly progressive decline in kidney function, while type 2 HRS is associated with ascites (fluid accumulation in the abdomen) that does not improve with standard diuretic medications. The risk of death in hepatorenal syndrome is very high; the mortality of individuals with type 1 HRS is over 50% over the short term, as determined by historical case series.