Renal News
Dialysis bloodstream infections significantly reduced by following CDC guidelines
Date: 17 May
Source: Nephrology News
Using infection prevention guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can lead to a 32% decrease in overall bloodstream infections and a 54% decrease in vascular access-related bloodstream infections among dialysis patients, according to the results from the CDC's Dialysis Bloodstream Infection Prevention Collaborative. The agency said approximately 37,000 bloodstream infections occur each year among dialysis patients with central line catheters, at an estimated cost of $23,000 per hospitalization.
Two dialysis patients die, others hospitalized after treatment at Fresenius Alabama clinic
Date: 15 May
Source: Nephrology News
Dialysis provider Fresenius Medical Care North America shut down a dialysis clinic in Bessemer, Ala. last week after two dialysis patients died and others were hospitalized due to infection-related illnesses.
Kidney problems linked to traffic fumes
Date: 14 May
Source: BBC News
Living close to a busy road may increase your risk of developing kidney problems, research suggests.
Children on dialysis for severe kidney disease have reduced risk of death
Date: 10 May
Source: News-Medical.net
Children on dialysis for severe kidney disease have a dramatically reduced risk of death compared to 20 years ago, a new study shows. The findings, from a study led by Dr. Bethany Foster from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), are very encouraging for children with end-stage kidney disease. These children face a significantly shortened life expectancy, with dialysis as the only life-saving therapy while they await transplant. This study was published in JAMA.
New kidney stone treatment hailed
Date: 6 May
Source: Belfast Telegraph
A 27-year-old man has become one of the first patients in the UK to have his kidney stones removed using "micro instruments" which are only millimetres in size.
Risk on a platter
Date: 5 May
Source: The Hindu
A recent research on the safety of GM (genetically modified) foods has exposed the folly of limiting earlier researches to just 90 days as it found that many of the serious health problems appear after 90 days. This research was conducted by a team led by Gilles-Eric Seralini, Professor of Microbiology at the University of Caen in France.
Exercise lowers women's kidney stone risk
Date: 4 May
Source: Boston Globe
Women have another reason to exercise: It may help prevent kidney stones. You don't have to break a sweat or be a super athlete, either. Even walking for a couple hours a week can cut the risk of developing this painful and common problem by about one-third, a large study found
NCS Research Dialysis Anemia Trends survey shows nephrologists targeting lower Hbs, titrating frequently
Date: 2 May
Source: Nephrology News & Issues
NCS Research, a research arm of Nephrology Clinical Solutions that is focused on nephrology health care providers, released the results of its Dialysis Anemia Trends survey of 175 dialysis professionals in the United States.
Dialysis Outcomes Practice Pattern Study shows EPO dose, Hbs continue descent
Date: 2 May
Source: Nephrology News & Issues
With the shadow of rebasing hanging over the end-stage renal disease payment bundle in 2013, dialysis providers are hunkering down on preparing for the worst. That includes shedding more and more units of the once-profitable anemia drug Epogen––and bringing hemoglobins down with it.
Doctors jailed for organ removals
Date: 1 May
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
Five people were convicted on Monday in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, in connection with an elaborate organ-trafficking network that lured poor people to the country to sell their kidneys and other organs to wealthy transplant recipients from Israel, the US, Canada and Germany. Organs sold for as much as $US130,000 each.
Mark Colvin's kidney donor reveals identity and joy
Date: 1 May
Source: ABC Online
The donor who gave a kidney to ABC broadcaster Mark Colvin has revealed their identity as well as the extraordinary story of how they met, to highlight the ease of organ donation and how it can enrich both parties.
Chinese surgeon should not keep award, academics say
Date: 29 April
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
A Chinese doctor accused of overseeing the harvesting of organs from political prisoners for transplantation should be stripped of an honorary professorship awarded by the University of Sydney, academics say.
'Calculator' used in transplant decisions
Date: 28 April
Source: stuff.co.nz
A lack of kidney donors has forced specialists to introduce a "mortality calculator" that will bump people off the transplant list if they don't meet certain criteria.
Cutting for the stone
Date: 28 April
Source: Radio National
Medical historian Dr Jim Leavesley from Halls Head in Western Australia takes us through the history of surgery to remove bladder stones. The 355th anniversary of the cure for this condition is 1st May this year.
Showers, catheters, and dialysis patients: Nephrology nurses look at best practices
Date: 25 April
Source: Nephrology News & Issues
LAS VEGAS--What are the risks of infection from central venous catheters when dialysis patients shower? Do dressings make a difference in warding off infection? A new study funded by the American Nephrology Nurses Association and presented this week had some surprising results.
ANNA hopes ideas delivered by Parker 'catch fire' with nephrology nurses at annual meeting
Date: 23 April
Source: Nephrology News & Issues
LAS VEGAS––Rosa Park's simple defiance of the status quo in December 1965 in Montgomery, Ala. had a huge impact on the civil rights movement. Today, nephrology nurses can have the same impact by making simple changes in how they treat individuals with kidney disease, changes that can have a big impact on long-term outcomes. Rosa Park's simple action helped speaker Thomas Parker III, MD, deliver his message during the American Nephrology Nurses Association's Janel Parker Memorial Plenary Session yesterday at ANNA's 44th national symposium held in Las Vegas.
Researchers report progress on non-invasive method to assess kidney function
Date: 17 April
Source: News-Medical.net
Researchers may have found a way to block kidney-destroying inflammation and help damaged kidney cells recover. In a related study, they report progress on a non-invasive method to assess how much kidney function has survived a serious bout of inflammation or a chronic problem like high blood pressure.
Kidney transplant research
Date: 16 April
Source: Radio NZ
Researchers in the United States have succeeded in making a working kidney and transplanting it into rats. The team at Massachusetts General Hospital hope the technique can be successfully adapted for human beings.
Legal highs cause kidney damage
Date: 16 April
Source: NZ Doctor
Doctors are being told to consider testing patients who use legal highs for kidney and cardiac problems, after three young people suffered kidney damage from smoking synthetic cannabis this month.
Rat kidney transplant promises new from old
Date: 16 April
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
A laboratory-made kidney has been transplanted into rats, marking a step forward in a quest to help patients suffering from kidney failure say US researchers.
Kidney grown in lab successfully transplanted into rat
Date: 15 April
Source: Guardian
Scientists have grown a kidney in a laboratory and shown that it works when implanted into a living animal. The work is an important step towards the longer-term goal of growing personalised replacement organs that could be transplanted into people with kidney failure.
Apple-shaped bodies prone to kidney disease risk
Date: 12 April
Source: Times of India
A new study has suggested that high blood pressure in the kidneys of people with apple-shaped bodies may be responsible for their increased risk of developing kidney disease later in life.
Organ donor trial to be closely monitored
Date: 8 April
Source: ABC Online - AM (transcript)
One of the country's leading medical ethicists says the Government's trial program for organ donor payments will need to be carefully monitored.
Live donors to get financial support
Date: 7 April
Source: The Australian
AUSTRALIA will never adopt a cash-for-organs scheme, but will follow other countries in paying donors who take leave from work, Health Minister Tanya Plibersek says.
Non-dairy calcium seen to lower kidney stone risk
Date: 5 April
Source: Reuters
Getting plenty of calcium from foods has been shown to lower the likelihood of kidney stones in those most at risk, but a new study makes clear the benefit isn't just linked to milk products.
Study examines dialysis survival among racial and ethnic subgroups
Date: 29 March
Source: News-Medical.net
Among kidney failure patients on dialysis, Hispanics tend to live the longest and Whites the shortest, with Blacks' survival time in between these two, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). Examining the reasons for these survival differences could help improve care for all patients with kidney disease.
Study results show trends in surgical management of patients with kidney disease
Date: 26 March
Source: News-Medical.net
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have released study results that show national treatment trends in the surgical management of patients with kidney disease. The study found that partial and complete kidney removal (total nephrectomy) and energy-based techniques to destroy tumors are all on the rise. Surprisingly, the patients most in need of kidney-sparing surgery are still more likely to undergo total nephrectomy. The findings recently published online in BJU International.
Colvin gets a new kidney - and kidney gets a Twitter account
Date: 25 March
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
At 9.11am on Friday, ABC Radio's silken-voiced Mark Colvin announced to his 32,000 followers on Twitter that he was about to go under the knife at Prince of Wales Hospital to receive a new kidney.
NT rejects funds for dialysis centres
Date: 18 March
Source: The Australian
A TWO-YEAR bid to improve dialysis services for indigenous people in central Australia has collapsed after the Northern Territory government handed back $10 million in funding to build two remote service centres in Alice Springs and Tennant Creek.
Study shows race and geographic area play important roles in patient with chronic kidney disease
Date: 15 March
Source: News-Medical.net
Race and geographic area play important roles in determining whether a patient with chronic kidney disease (CKD) receives optimal care before developing kidney failure, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). The findings suggest that policies aimed at eliminating disparities in kidney care must take these factors into account.
Life, death and laughter
Date: 10 March
Source: Otago Daily Times
It's the end of an era, the final whistle on one of Otago's most remarkable nursing careers. Maree McDonald left Dunedin Hospital for the last time yesterday and reflected on a rewarding, often frustrating and at times dramatic life in dialysis, one of the most complex aspects of nursing.
Biomarker plasma NGAL suggested to improve clinical diagnosis of AKI in the emergency department
Date: 6 March
Source: News-Medical.net
Alere Inc. is pleased to announce the results of a study published this week in Critical Care, demonstrating that plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (pNGAL), a biomarker that aids in the early detection of acute kidney injury (AKI), improved the diagnosis of AKI when added to clinical judgment.
Two drug companies announce anemia drug recall
Date: 25 February
Source: Yahoo Business & Finance
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Drug companies Affymax Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. have issued a recall of their anemia drug Omontys after reports of severe allergic reactions in some kidney dialysis patients, including some deaths.
eGFR 'powerful' operative risk gauge
Date: 10 February
Source: News-Medical.net
Patients' estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) is highly predictive of their risk for dying after surgery, shows a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Allopurinol may improve CV outcomes in kidney disease
Date: 10 February
Source: News-Medical.net
The xanthine oxidase inhibitor allopurinol appears to be beneficial in preventing cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and all-cause mortality in patients with hypertensive nephropathy, show findings from a Japanese study.
ETC fund dialysis treatment in Nambucca Valley
Date: 9 February
Source: Coffs Coast Advocate
THE ETC Community Support fund has given a much needed shot in the arm to the long running campaign for dialysis treatment to be provided in the Nambucca Valley. The local dialysis group has received $7,000 from ETC to go towards training nurses in treatment and patient support.
Study finds two biomarkers of acute kidney injury
Date: 8 February
Source: News-Medical.net
Acute kidney injury strikes large numbers of hospitalized patients, including those with no prior kidney-related illness, and is one of the most costly and deadly conditions affecting critically ill patients. Findings published today in Critical Care from a Mayo Clinic-led, multicenter study identify two biomarkers of acute kidney injury that can be easily measured in urine and detect affected patients roughly 12 to 36 hours earlier than current tests.
Tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 involved in renal decline in diabetes
Date: 8 February
Source: News-Medical.net
Researchers have found that circulating levels of tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNF-R2) are independently associated with the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in nonobese Japanese patients with Type 2 diabetes.
Cross-border deals on renal, cardiac care
Date: 7 February
Source: ABC Online
The ACT has signed two new cross-border health agreements with New South Wales. The ACT will provide renal care to residents of southern New South Wales as part of a five year deal.
Acceleron commences dalantercept phase 2 study in metastatic renal cell carcinoma
Date: 5 February
Source: News-Medical.net
Acceleron Pharma, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing protein therapeutics for cancer and orphan diseases, announced the initiation of a phase 2 study of dalantercept, a novel angiogenesis inhibitor that targets the activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1) pathway. The phase 2 study is a two-part, randomized study of dalantercept in combination with axitinib (Inlyta®, Pfizer), a vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, to treat patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Acceleron, its partners, and collaborators have now initiated seven phase 2 studies across three of Acceleron's programs - dalantercept (ACE-041), sotatercept (ACE-011), and ACE-536 - since November of 2012.
NZ organ donation rate among world's lowest
Date: 26 January
Source: NZ Herald
New Zealand's organ donation rate remains among the lowest in the world, with just 38 deceased donors last year - the same as the previous year and unchanged from a decade earlier.
Human kidney stem-cell find
Date: 24 January
Source: The Australian
RESEARCHERS in Japan say they have grown human kidney tissue from stem cells for the first time in a potential breakthrough for millions with damaged organs who rely on dialysis.
Organ donations increase but miss target
Date: 22 January
Source: The Australian
AUSTRALIA is on track to lift organ donation rates to new levels by 2015 despite missing a key target last year, the nation's transplant authority says.
Victoria's organ donor rate the lowest in three years
Date: 22 January
Source: Herald Sun
ORGAN donor rates are slowly increasing in Australia, but still fail to meet life-saving targets. Victoria even went backwards in 2012.
Donor organ fraud 'shatters' Germans
Date: 11 January
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
BERLIN: German medical authorities are calling for an extensive overhaul of the country's organ transplant program after transplant centres were put under criminal investigation over allegations they had systematically manipulated donor waiting lists.
Doctors face disease dilemma
Date: 17 December
Source: stuff.co.nz
New Zealand's health system will need to find new ways of dealing with the growing number of people suffering from kidney disease, two retiring Christchurch kidney specialists say.
Study tracks movements of leukocytes through the kidney
Date: 16 December
Source: News-Medical.net
Better targeted treatments for 20 per cent of renal failure patients are on the horizon following a key discovery about the role of white blood cells in kidney inflammation.
Kidney Failure Under the Microscope
Date: 16 December
Source: Science Daily
Better targeted treatments for 20 per cent of renal failure patients are on the horizon following a key discovery about the role of white blood cells in kidney inflammation.
Study reveals increase in incidence of dialysis-requiring acute kidney injury
Date: 7 December
Source: News-Medical.net
Acute kidney injury (AKI), an abrupt or rapid decline in kidney function, is a serious and increasingly prevalent condition that can occur after major infections, major surgery, or exposure to certain medications. The incidence rates of the most serious form of AKI—which requires dialysis—increased rapidly in all patient subgroups in the past decade in the United States, and the number of deaths associated with the condition more than doubled, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN).
Baxter enters definitive agreement to acquire Gambro
Date: 5 December
Source: News-Medical.net
Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Gambro AB, a privately held dialysis product company based in Lund, Sweden, for total consideration of 26.5 billion SEK (approximately $4.0 billion USD at current exchange rates). Gambro is a global medical technology company focused on developing, manufacturing and supplying dialysis products and therapies for patients with acute or chronic kidney disease. The acquisition gives Baxter a comprehensive dialysis product portfolio, complements Baxter's global home dialysis offerings, and positions the company to better meet the evolving needs of the large and growing dialysis market.
Coronary artery bypass grafting safe for dialysis patients
Date: 2 December
Source: News-Medical.net
Among the two available procedures for opening blocked arteries surrounding the heart, one appears to be safer than the other for dialysis patients, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). The findings may help lead to better care for kidney failure patients with coronary heart disease.
Growing waistlines put pressure on renal care
Date: 29 November
Source: nzdoctor.co.nz
The new Midland Regional Renal Service has a new and bigger base at Waikato Hospital, and it's desperately needed, says clinical director Peter Sizeland.
Dialysis company accused of giant Medicare fraud
Date: 30 November
Source: cnn.com
(CNN) -- It started with a chance conversation between a doctor and a nurse several years ago. But that brief encounter may end up exposing what could be one of the largest Medicare frauds in U.S. history.
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