Prevalence and trends of pregnancy-related acute kidney injury in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Pregnancy-Related Acute Kidney Injury (PRAKI) is an important contributor to maternal-fetal morbidity and mortality. The burden of PRAKI in sub-Saharan Africa is not well documented. We conducted a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to estimate the prevalence of PRAKI in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: We systematically searched the literature published between January 2000 and May 2024 on PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and African Journals Online. We used a random-effects model to derive the pooled prevalence estimates and analysed trends in prevalence using weighted meta-regression. We assessed the quality of the included studies using the Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool and evaluated the presence of publication bias using Begg's rank correlation and Egger's test.

Results: Thirteen studies satisfied the inclusion criteria, with a total sample size of 5273 individuals, ranging between 46 and 1547 across the studies. The pooled prevalence of PRAKI was 15.6% (95% CI 11.5-20.1%) with significant heterogeneity in prevalence rates (heterogeneity chi-square: 179.2, p < 0.001, I²: 93.4%). We observed an increase in the trend of PRAKI at a rate of 0.8% per year, with insufficient evidence of a difference in prevalence over the years (p = 0.119).

Conclusion: Our findings show a high prevalence of PRAKI and suggest a rising trend in the prevalence of PRAKI within sub-Saharan Africa. Future studies should investigate interventions to improve access to, and the quality of, antenatal care services to reduce maternal-fetal morbidity and mortality.