Gaylord T. Hoffert, MD, Nephrologist - Leading Physician of the World

04/02/2015

If kidney cancer is diagnosed early - before it spreads - 80 percent of patients survive. However, finding it early has been among the disease's greatest challenges.Now, researchers at Washington U...

03/12/2015

A higher intake by postmenopausal women of the natural antioxidant lycopene, found in foods like tomatoes, watermelon and papaya, may lower the risk of renal cell carcinoma, a type of kidney cancer...

03/03/2015

Patients in the very early stages of dementia could miss out on a potentially effective treatment after misleading research was published last year, say medical experts.The researchers, who claimed...

02/14/2015

Striking images reveal new insights into how the kidney develops from a group of cells into a complex organ.The pictures are helping scientists to understand the early stages of development in mamm...

01/31/2015

January 29th marks the publication of a report by the European ADPKD Forum (EAF), an international, multidisciplinary panel of experts from the fields of nephrology, hepatology and genetics, as wel...

01/14/2015

Insights into the role of genetic variants in kidney disease http://wp.me/p4CPoA-Y

New research provides insights into the ties between certain genetic variants and kidney disease in African Americans. The genetic association is one of the strongest ever reported for a common disease, and these latest findings may help improve diagnosis and treatment. The study appears in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). African Americans have a 4-fold increased risk for… [ 372 more words. ]

12/31/2014

Kidney disease undiagnosed in majority of type 2 diabetics http://wp.me/p4CPoA-V

Only 12 percent of type 2 diabetics with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are properly diagnosed as having CKD, according to a new study published in PLOS Medicine. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure in the United States, and more than 35 percent of diabetics over age 20 are estimated to have CKD. "This research underscores the urgency of testing at-risk populations for kidney disease," said Joseph Vassalotti, MD, Chief Medical Officer of the National Kidney Foundation. [ 428 more words. ]

12/18/2014

Genes expressed during urinary tract infections suggest next-generation treatment http://wp.me/p4CPoA-S

Urinary tract infections can occur with no apparent cause, and as effectiveness of antibiotics fades, treating them is also becoming less predictable. University of Michigan Medical School researchers have identified bacterial genes that help the infections spread, providing a potential new target for treating UTIs, a global public health concern mostly affecting women. UTIs lead to lost work time, emergency room visits and health care spending of $3.5 billion in the United States. [ 238 more words. ]

11/30/2014

Kidney function likely affected by perceived racial discrimination http://wp.me/p4CPoA-P

Perceived racial discrimination may contribute to disparities related to kidney disease, according to a study presented at ASN Kidney Week 2014 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, PA. Psychosocial factors such as perceived racial discrimination have been associated with chronic diseases, but little is known about the relationship between perceived racial discrimination and kidney function decline. Researchers led by Angedith Poggi-Burke, MPH and Deidra Crews, MD, FASN (National Institute on Aging and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, respectively) studied 1,574 adults with preserved kidney function in the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) study (Baltimore City, Maryland). [ 198 more words. ]

11/17/2014

Identifying transplant rejection http://wp.me/p4CPoA-M

Acute rejection after kidney transplantation occurs in about 15%-20% of patients despite immunosuppressive therapy. Rejection is usually heralded by an increase in the patient's serum creatinine (a marker of kidney function), and a kidney biopsy is then performed to confirm whether rejection is taking place. However, elevated creatinine is not sufficiently sensitive to identify all early rejection or specific enough to prevent some unnecessary kidney biopsies, so a noninvasive means of identifying acute rejection is needed. [ 252 more words. ]

10/28/2014

Recent kidney policy changes have not created racial disparities in care http://wp.me/p4CPoA-I

Recent policy and guideline changes related to the care of patients with kidney failure have not created racial disparities, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). Such studies are needed to ensure that all patients continue to receive the highest quality of care after such changes are implemented. [ 296 more words. ]

10/06/2014

Potential blood test for disorder that can accelerate organ failure in kidney transplant recipients http://wp.me/p4CPoA-F

Researchers at UC San Francisco and Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, may have found a predictor for a disorder affecting kidney transplant recipients that can accelerate organ failure, a discovery that eventually could allow for customized therapies and improved patient selection for transplant. The study of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), a devastating form of kidney disease, is in the journal Science Translational Medicine. [ 649 more words. ]