Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-05-23eCollection Date: 2023-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2023.1175088
Sahibzadi Mahrukh Noor, Farah Abuazzam, Roy Mathew, Zhiwei Zhang, Amir Abdipour, Sayna Norouzi
{"title":"IgA nephropathy: a review of existing and emerging therapies.","authors":"Sahibzadi Mahrukh Noor, Farah Abuazzam, Roy Mathew, Zhiwei Zhang, Amir Abdipour, Sayna Norouzi","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1175088","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1175088","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common form of primary glomerulonephritis worldwide. Recently, there have been multiple advances in the understanding of IgAN pathophysiology and therapeutic options. Despite the advent of new treatment options, individual risk stratification of the disease course and choosing the best treatment strategy for the patient remains challenging. A multitude of clinical trials is ongoing, opening multiple opportunities for enrollment. In this brief review we discuss the current approach to the management of IgAN and highlight the ongoing clinical trials.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"1175088"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479631/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10179976","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-02-27eCollection Date: 2023-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2023.1043874
Roberta Fenoglio, Martina Cozzi, Giulio Del Vecchio, Savino Sciascia, Antonella Barreca, Alessandro Comandone, Dario Roccatello
{"title":"The need for kidney biopsy in the management of side effects of target and immunotherapy.","authors":"Roberta Fenoglio, Martina Cozzi, Giulio Del Vecchio, Savino Sciascia, Antonella Barreca, Alessandro Comandone, Dario Roccatello","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1043874","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1043874","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The introduction of innovative therapies, resulting from revisiting cancer as a disease of the immune system, has changed the scenario of complications. These new classes of drugs, such as targeted therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors, assure substantial advantages in cancer therapy, despite some side effects affecting various organs, including the kidney. Histological evaluations of kidney disorders induced by targeted/immunotherapy are limited.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>In this study we examined the histological features of patients treated with new cancer agents who underwent a kidney biopsy for new onset kidney failure and/or urinary abnormalities.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The cohort included 30 adult patients. The most frequently administered therapies were immunotherapy (30%), targeted therapy (26.7%), immunotherapy plus targeted therapy (13.3%), immunotherapy plus chemotherapy (13.3%), targeted therapy plus chemotherapy (16.7%). The most common histological finding was tubular interstitial nephritis (30%) that was associated with acute tubular necrosis in 4 cases, and thrombotic microangiopathy (23.3%). After kidney biopsy, 16 of the 30 patients were treated according to the histological diagnosis. Fourteen patients were treated with steroids. One patient with membranous nephropathy was treated with a single dose of rituximab. A patient with severe thrombotic microangiopathy requiring dialysis received a treatment with eculizumab for 3 months. Overall some renal response was obtained in all patients treated with glucocorticoids, while complete kidney response was achieved in the patient treated with rituximab. Cancer treatment was resumed without change in 21 out of 30 patients.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Kidney biopsy is critical for the management of kidney toxicities and should be strongly encouraged for patients showing adverse kidney effects of novel cancer agents.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"1043874"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-02-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479613/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10179975","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-02-08eCollection Date: 2023-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2023.1110704
P S Vali, Namrata Parikh, Krithika Mohan, Urmila Anandh
{"title":"The changing landscape in nephrology education in India.","authors":"P S Vali, Namrata Parikh, Krithika Mohan, Urmila Anandh","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1110704","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1110704","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Digital tools have revolutionized education in nephrology in India. All forms of in-person learning are moving online. Social media have taken over the world, with clinicians learning and promoting multidirectional education methods. E-learning is better equipped to keep up with the rapid pace of new knowledge generation and dissemination. The use of digital multimedia tools to enhance rapid learning is backed by science, viz., dual-coding theory. Digital tools such as Twitter, blogs, podcasts, YouTube, and Nephrology Simulator (NephSIM) have had an impact in facilitating nephrology education among medical professionals and the general public. Digital tools, such as NephMadness, have resulted in the gamification of nephrology learning. Social media usage by the nephrology community in India is growing at a rapid pace. Everyday Cases in Nephrology (#ECNeph), a monthly Twitter-based discussion focused on academically challenging clinical cases, has its origins in India. The Women in Nephrology, India (WIN-India) initiative is very active in facilitating digital education in India and has, in a short space of time, created phenomenal momentum. Furthermore, non-governmental organizations in India, such as the Kidney Warriors Foundation and the Multi Organ Harvesting Aid Network (MOHAN) Foundation, have successfully tapped into social media to educate and aid kidney disease patients. All technologies come with some drawbacks. Despite their acceptance and validation, digital tools have their own pitfalls. These relate to (1) accessibility and connectivity, (2) accuracy of the scientific information, (3) social media noise, and (4) patient privacy. All pitfalls of digital education can be addressed by avoiding excessive social media overload and adopting an appropriate peer-review process. It is advisable to seek written consent from patients whenever patient data are posted online, to avoid privacy issues.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"1110704"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-02-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479687/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10179977","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-02-01eCollection Date: 2023-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2023.1114486
Aida Frías, Francisco Vargas, Justo Sandino, Raquel Berzal, Marta Rivero, Lucía Cordero, Teresa Cavero, Julián Segura, Florencio García, Eduardo Hernández, Eduardo Gutiérrez, Pilar Auñón, Irene Zamanillo, Julio Pascual, Enrique Morales
{"title":"Octogenarians with chronic kidney disease in the nephrology clinic: Progressors vs. non-progressors.","authors":"Aida Frías, Francisco Vargas, Justo Sandino, Raquel Berzal, Marta Rivero, Lucía Cordero, Teresa Cavero, Julián Segura, Florencio García, Eduardo Hernández, Eduardo Gutiérrez, Pilar Auñón, Irene Zamanillo, Julio Pascual, Enrique Morales","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1114486","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1114486","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The current definition of chronic kidney disease applied to patients over the age of 80 has increased the number of referrals to Nephrology. However not all of these patients may benefit from its assessment. This study aims to analyze the evolution of ≥80 years old patients referred to Nephrology.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Single-center study including patients ≥80 years old with eGFR <60 mL/min/1,73m2 who were referred to Nephrology consultation for the first time. Clinical and analytical parameters were collected retrospectively 12 months before the visit, and prospectively at baseline, and 12 and 24 months after the initial visit. We divided patients into two groups based on annual eGFR loss: progressors (>5 mL/min/1.73m2) and non-progressors (≤5 mL/min/1,73m2).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 318 patients were included, mean age was 84,9 ± 4 (80-97) years. Baseline serum creatinine was 1,65 ± 0,62 mg/dL, eGRF 35 (28-42) mL/min/1,73, and albumin/creatinine ratio 36 (7-229) mg/g. 55,7% of the patients met the definition of progressor at baseline (initial-progressors), 26,3% were progressors after a 12-month follow-up and 13,4% after 24 months. 21,2% and 11,4% of initial-progressors met this definition at 12 and 24 month follow up. The main risk factor for progression was albuminuria. No relationship was found between the nephrologist intervention and the evolution of renal function among initial non-progressors.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Elderly patients who have stable renal function at the time of referral will continue to have stable renal function over the subsequent 24 months and thus may not need to be referred to a nephrologist.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"1114486"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479568/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10171637","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-01-31eCollection Date: 2023-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2023.938710
Vladimir Barrera Villanueva, Daniel Alejandro Barrera Amorós, Eira Ingrid Castillo Echeverria, Luis F Budar-Fernández, Omar Israel Salas Nolasco, Luis A Juncos, Lilia Rizo-Topete
{"title":"Extracorporeal blood purification in patients with liver failure: Considerations for the low-and-middle income countries of Latin America.","authors":"Vladimir Barrera Villanueva, Daniel Alejandro Barrera Amorós, Eira Ingrid Castillo Echeverria, Luis F Budar-Fernández, Omar Israel Salas Nolasco, Luis A Juncos, Lilia Rizo-Topete","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.938710","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2023.938710","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Severe liver failure is common in Low-and-Medium Income Countries (LMIC) and is associated with a high morbidity, mortality and represents an important burden to the healthcare system. In its most severe state, liver failure is a medical emergency, that requires supportive care until either the liver recovers or a liver transplant is performed. Frequently the patient requires intensive support until their liver recovers or they receive a liver transplant. Extracorporeal blood purification techniques can be employed as a strategy for bridging to transplantation or recovery. The most common type of extracorporeal support provided to these patients is kidney replacement therapy (KRT), as acute kidney injury is very common in these patients and KRT devices more readily available. However, because most of the substances that the liver clears are lipophilic and albumin-bound, they are not cleared effectively by KRT. Hence, there has been much effort in developing devices that more closely resemble the clearance function of the liver. This article provides a review of various non-biologic extracorporeal liver support devices that can be used to support these patients, and our perspective keeping in mind the needs and unique challenges present in the LMIC of Latin America.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"938710"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479632/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10551194","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-01-06eCollection Date: 2022-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2022.1068395
Brett Burrows, Nicole DePasquale, Jessica Ma, C Barrett Bowling
{"title":"The potential of mHealth for older adults on dialysis and their care partners: What's been done and where do we go from here?","authors":"Brett Burrows, Nicole DePasquale, Jessica Ma, C Barrett Bowling","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2022.1068395","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2022.1068395","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Self-care, or the dynamic, daily process of becoming actively involved in one's own care, is paramount to prevent and manage complications of end-stage kidney disease. However, many older dialysis patients face distinctive challenges to adequate engagement in self-care. One promising strategy for facilitating self-care among older dialysis patients and their care partners is the utilization of mobile health (mhealth). mHealth encompasses mobile and wireless communication devices used to improve healthcare delivery, patient and care partner outcomes, and patient care. In other disease populations, mHealth has been linked to maintenance of or improvements in self-management, medication compliance, patient education, and patient-provider communication, all of which can slow disease progression. Although mHealth is considered feasible, acceptable, and clinically useful, this technology has predominately targeted younger patients. Thus, there is a need to develop mHealth for older dialysis patients and their care partners. In this article, we describe current mHealth usage in older dialysis patients, including promising findings, challenges, and research gaps. Given the lack of research on mHealth among care partners of older dialysis patients, we highlight lessons learned from other disease populations to inform the future design and implementation of mHealth for these key stakeholders. We also propose that leveraging care partners represents an opportunity to meaningfully tailor mHealth applications and, by extension, improve care partner physical and mental health and decrease caregiver burden. We conclude with a summary of future directions to help older dialysis patients and their care partners receive recognition as target end-users amid the constant evolution of mHealth.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"2 ","pages":"1068395"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479574/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10183337","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Frontiers in nephrologyPub Date : 2023-01-06eCollection Date: 2022-01-01DOI: 10.3389/fneph.2022.1032468
Anika Lucas, Jeanette Rutledge, Richard Sloane, Katherine Hall, Ciara Green, Carl Pieper, Cathleen Colón-Emeric, Rasheeda Hall
{"title":"Physical activity is a potential measure of physical resilience in older adults receiving hemodialysis.","authors":"Anika Lucas, Jeanette Rutledge, Richard Sloane, Katherine Hall, Ciara Green, Carl Pieper, Cathleen Colón-Emeric, Rasheeda Hall","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2022.1032468","DOIUrl":"10.3389/fneph.2022.1032468","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Physical resilience, or the ability to recover after a physical stressor, declines with aging. Efforts to preserve physical resilience in the older dialysis population are critically needed; however, validated, patient-centered measures that are sensitive to change are also needed. Our objective was to assess accelerometer-derived step count variability, or a measure of intra-individual variation in physical activity, as a potential measure of physical resilience among older adults receiving hemodialysis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Community-dwelling ambulatory older adults receiving in-center hemodialysis were prospectively enrolled. Participants wore wrist accelerometers during daytime hours on both dialysis and non-dialysis days up to 14 days, and the feasibility of accelerometer use was assessed from wear time. We used accelerometer data to compute step counts in 4-hour blocks and step count variability. Physical function was assessed with the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB which includes gait speed test), grip strength, activities of daily living (ADLs) instruments, and life space mobility. We assessed interval fatigue (subjective rating from 0 to 10) on dialysis and non-dialysis days and self-reported recovery time. We assessed the correlations of step count variability with measures of physical function and step count and interval fatigue.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 37 enrolled participants, 29 had sufficient accelerometer data for analyses. Among the 29 participants, mean (SD) age was 70.6(4.8) years, and 55% (n=16) were male and 72% (n=21) were Black race. Participants were largely sedentary with median (Q1-Q3) self-reported total kilocalories per week of 200 (36-552). Step count variability was positively correlated with measures of physical function: SPPB (r=0.50, p<0.05), gait speed (r=0.59, p<0.05), handgrip strength (r=0.71, p<0.05), Instrumental ADLs (r=0.44, p<0.05) and life space mobility (r=0.54, p<0.05).There was a weak inverse correlation between post-dialysis step counts (4-hour blocks after a dialysis session) and post-dialysis interval fatigue [r=-0.19 (n=102, p=0.06).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Physical activity assessment <i>via</i> accelerometer is feasible for older adults receiving hemodialysis. Step count variability correlated with physical function, so it may be a novel measure of physical resilience. Further studies are needed to validate this measure.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"2 ","pages":"1032468"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479669/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10179939","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
T. Van Meerhaeghe, J. Baurain, O. Bechter, C. Orte Cano, V. del Marmol, A. Devresse, P. Doubel, M. Hanssens, R. Hellemans, D. Liénard, A. Rutten, B. Sprangers, A. Le Moine, S. Aspeslagh
{"title":"The roles of heme oxygenase-1 in renal disease.","authors":"Hongfu Zhai, Lihua Ni, Xiaoyan Wu","doi":"10.3389/fneph.2023.1156346","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fneph.2023.1156346","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Heme oxygenase (HO), a heat shock protein containing hemoglobin, is an important enzyme in heme catabolism. It is involved in cell homeostasis and has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-apoptosis, immunomodulation, and other functions. It is expressed at a modest level in most normal tissues. When the body suffers from ischemia hypoxia, injury, toxins, and other nociceptive stimuli, the expression increases, which can transform the oxidative microenvironment into an antioxidant environment to promote tissue recovery from damage. In recent years, research has continued to verify its value in a variety of human bodily systems. It is also regarded as a key target for the treatment of numerous disorders. With the advancement of studies, its significance in renal disease has gained increasing attention. It is thought to have a significant protective function in preventing acute kidney injury and delaying the progression of chronic renal diseases. Its protective mechanisms include anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cell cycle regulation, apoptosis inhibition, hemodynamic regulation, and other aspects, which have been demonstrated in diverse animal models. Furthermore, as a protective factor, its potential therapeutic efficacy in renal disease has recently become a hot area of research. Although a large number of preclinical trials have confirmed its therapeutic potential in reducing kidney injury, due to the problems and side effects of HO-1 induction therapy, its efficacy and safety in clinical application need to be further explored. In this review, we summarize the current state of research on the mechanism, location, and treatment of HO and its relationship with various renal diseases.</p>","PeriodicalId":73091,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in nephrology","volume":"3 ","pages":"1156346"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10479750/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10237267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}