Articles & Issues

Background: Low vitamin D concentrations are prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). We investigated the relationship between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) or 1,25-dihydroxyvit...

Anorexia nervosa is a common psychiatric disorder that disproportionately affects adolescents and young adults and is associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Anorexia nervosa can affect...

Background: Patients beginning dialysis therapy are at risk of death and illness. The IMPACT (Incident Management of Patients, Actions Centered on Treatment) quality improvement program was developed ...

Background: Accurate measurement of proteinuria is important in the diagnosis and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The reference standard test, 24-hour urinary protein excretion, is inconve...

Genetic causes of focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) typically involve mutations and allele variants of genes expressed in podocytes or, more rarely, glomerular basement membranes. In this ...

Background: Immunosuppression is associated with a number of adverse outcomes, but typically it is the physician, not the patient, who decides on the drug regimen. The perspective of the patient in cl...

Background: Immune system dysregulation is associated with end-stage renal disease. Although decreased cellular immunity increases susceptibility to herpes zoster, the risk of herpes zoster in patient...

Background: Waiting time for a kidney transplant is calculated from the date the patient is placed on the UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) waitlist to the date the patient undergoes transplant....

The end-stage renal disease (ESRD) prospective payment system (PPS), also referred to as the expanded bundle, and the accompanying Quality Incentive Program (QIP), were implemented by the US Centers f...

Kidney stones are listed among the complications of eating disorders; however, very few cases have been reported. We present an additional case of nephrolithiasis associated with laxative abuse, inclu...

Background: In 2011, the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act replaced the case-mix–adjusted composite payment system for Medicare outpatient dialysis facilities with a bundled end-sta...

Background: The strength and direction of the associations between inflammation and coagulation biomarkers with kidney disease onset and progression remain unclear, especially in a population-based se...

Anticoagulation is essential to hemodialysis, and unfractionated heparin (UFH) is the most commonly used anticoagulant in the United States. However, there is no universally accepted standard for its ...

The development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is accompanied by a progressive decrease in the ability to produce 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. Pharmacological replacement with active vitamin D therefore ...

The incidence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) is higher in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) than in the general population. PAD is a strong independent risk factor for increased cardiovas...

Background: Only 29% of deceased donor kidney recipients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) receive HCV-positive (HCV+) kidneys. These kidneys are discarded 2.5 times more often than their HCV-negative (HCV...

Background: The CKD-EPI (Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration) creatinine-based equation for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) is more accurate than the MDRD (Modification of Di...

The Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS) Practice Monitor (DPM) was developed to report trends in dialysis care in the context of the implementation of the end-stage renal disease pro...

Background: The association between chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) has been widely debated. Study Design: National population-based cohort study. Setting ...

Background: Epidemiologic observations have linked healthy dietary patterns to improved kidney function. Study Design: We assessed the effects of the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) on kidney function in...

Background: Identifying individuals at risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is critical for timely treatment initiation to slow progression of the disease. Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (...

Background: There is a gap of knowledge in the long-term outcomes of patients who have complete recovery of kidney function after an episode of acute kidney injury (AKI). We sought to determine whethe...

Severe crescentic and necrotizing glomerulonephritis typically is associated with anti–glomerular basement membrane or antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies. In this report, we describe a 23-year-old ...

Current strategies for posttransplant monitoring of kidney transplants consist of measuring serial serum creatinine levels, clinical follow-up, and in some programs, protocol biopsies. These strategie...

Background: Serum cystatin C level has been shown to have a stronger association with clinical outcomes than serum creatinine level. However, little is known about the combined association of cystatin...

Background: Kidney biopsy provides important information for nephrologists, but the risk of complications has not been systematically described. Study Design: Meta-analysis of randomized controlled tr...

Background: Conflicting relationships have been described between anemia correction using erythropoiesis-stimulating agents and progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study was undertaken t...

Chronic kidney disease–mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is the term used to describe the abnormalities of bone and mineral metabolism that occur in the setting of kidney disease. The spectrum of th...

Blood pressure traditionally has been measured in the clinic setting using the auscultatory method and a mercury sphygmomanometer. Technologic advances have led to improvements in measuring clinic blo...

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with increased all-cause mortality and kidney disease progression. Decreased kidney function at baseline may identify human immunodeficiency viru...

The role of neurohumoral factors in the sodium retention of nephrotic syndrome is controversial. We report a case with abrupt onset of severe nephrotic-range proteinuria and hypoalbuminemia due to mem...

Background: Whether treatment with adenosine receptor antagonists such as theophylline can prevent contrast-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) remains controversial. Study Design: We conducted a meta-a...

Background: Although much is known about the effect of chronic kidney failure and dialysis on the composition of solutes in plasma, little is known about their impact on the composition of gaseous com...

Background: It is not known whether nonselective and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) selective nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) differ in terms of hyperkalemia risk. The aim of this study was to...

Acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis is a common cause of acute nephritis in children. Transient hypocomplementemia and complete recovery are typical, with only a minority developing chronic dis...

Background: The aim was to assess whether inserting a longer soft silicone short-term dialysis catheter targeting tip placement in the right atrium could improve dialyzer circuit life span compared wi...

Background: Prophylaxis against contrast-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) in hospitalized patients is underused. We evaluated the impact of a computerized alert program for contrast-induced AKI for h...

Background: Depression is related to morbidity and mortality in patients with kidney failure treated by dialysis, but its influence on patients with earlier stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is u...

Background: Whether renal revascularization reduces left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with coronary artery disease is uncertain. Study Design: Randomized clinical trial testing the effect of re...

Background: Depressive symptoms are correlated with poor health outcomes in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The prevalence, severity, and treatment of depressive symptoms and potential risk ...

Background: Change in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is important for clinical decision making. GFR estimates from serum creatinine level provide an unbiased but imprecise estimate of GFR at single ...

Background: Chronic kidney disease is a high-risk condition for a variety of adverse safety events, yet little is known about differential rates of safety events across racial groups with decreased ki...

Care of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is complex and requires a standardized and multidisciplinary approach. A number of strategies have been suggested to improve care for patients with C...

Background: Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) is cleared predominantly by the kidneys and hence there is uncertainty about the safety of its use in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Our primary objective ...

Background: Metabolites such as creatinine and urea are established kidney function markers. High-throughput metabolomic studies have not been reported in large general population samples spanning nor...

Background: Cinacalcet effectively reduces elevated levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) in patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT), even those with severe disease for whom parathyroidectomy...

Background: Cognitive impairment is common but often undiagnosed in patients with end-stage renal disease, in part reflecting limited validated and easily administered tools to assess cognitive functi...

Background: Dialysis modality preferences of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and family caregivers are important, yet rarely quantified. Study Design: Prospective, unlabeled, discrete-choic...

Fibrillary glomerulonephritis (GN) is an uncommon cause of rapidly progressive kidney failure. We report a case of rapidly progressive kidney failure with kidney biopsy showing crescentic GN on light ...

Background: Poor nutritional status and both hyper- and hypophosphatemia are associated with increased mortality in maintenance hemodialysis (HD) patients. We assessed associations of phosphate binder...

Background: Living kidney donation is associated with better recipient outcomes compared with deceased kidney donation, but living kidney donors face the risk of physical and psychological complicatio...