Standard versus accelerated initiation of renal replacement therapy in acute kidney injury (STARRT-AKI): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background Acute kidney injury is a common and devastating complication of critical illness, for which renal replacement therapy is frequently needed to manage severe cases. While a recent systematic review suggested that “earlier” initiation of renal replacement therapy improves survival, completed trials are limited due to small size, single-centre status, and use of variable definitions to define “early” renal replacement therapy initiation.