NephMadness is back! Submit your 2026 picks here by March 31.
- What is NephMadness?
NephMadness is an educational game played across social media that is modeled after the US college basketball tournament, March Madness. Instead of basketball teams, the tournament features eight main nephrology topics (Regions) with two subtopics (Teams) pitted against each other. A Blue Ribbon Panel of experts chooses the winners, but participants submit their own brackets starting March 1st. Each topic is introduced by a referenced summary called a Scouting Report. Reading these reports provides an in depth review of a wide variety of topics. It is a unique way to enhance your clinical knowledge while earning CME and MOC credits. When filling out your bracket, you should pick the team that you believe will most significantly change the practice of nephrology over the next five years. You can submit brackets individually or form a group with your colleagues.
The 2026 Schedule:
- March 1st: Bracket submission period begins.
- March 31st: Deadline to submit your picks.
- April 2nd: The Effluent 8 are named.
- April 6th: The Filtered 4 are named.
- April 8th: The Finalists are announced.
- April 10th: The NephMadness 2026 Champion is revealed!
- How do I decide who wins in my bracket?
Read the “Scouting Report” posts on AJKD blog on each topic written by experts in the field that are an in-depth, referenced review of the topics. Then, decide which topic you think should move on to the next round. Still can’t decide? Flip a coin or try to predict how the Blue Ribbon Panel might vote. Take a look at our bracket above and how we got to our champion, POCUS in AKI. This year’s challengers are:
There are 8 main nephrology topics (REGIONS) with 2 subtopics (TEAMS) in the tournament.
- IgA Nephropathy: New B-Cell Targets versus Complement Inhibitors
Selection Committee Member: Laura Mariani @LauraMarianiMD
Writer: Alessandra Tomasi @AleTomasiMD - Artificial Intelligence: Computational Pathology versus Natural Language Processing
Selection Committee Members: Lili Chan & Kuang-Yu Jen
Writers: Neil Evans & Aditya Yelamanchi - Animal House: Dogs versus Cats
Selection Committee Members: Autumn Harris & Kelly Hyndman @DrKeeksPhD
Writers: Sarah Street & Susan DiGiovanni
- Trolls of Transplantation: BK versus CMV
Selection Committee Members: Sam Kant @kantsmd & Jeannina Smith @germatologist.bsky.social
Writers: Hariharasudan Natarajan @HariNataraj94 – @beanbuddy.bsky.social & Caitlyn Vlasschaert @DrFlashHeart – @drflashheart.bsky.social - C3G: C3G Diagnosis versus C3G Treatment
Selection Committee Member: Bradley Dixon
Writer: Aarushi Varshney - Cerebronephrology: in CKD versus in ESKD
Selection Committee Member: David Drew
Writers: Colton Jensen - POCUS: POCUS in AKI versus POCUS in ESKD
Selection Committee Members: Mohamed Hassan Kamel & Vandana Niyyar @vandyniyyar
Writers: Priyal Sakhuja - Genetics: PKD Masqueraders versus Fabry Treatment
Selection Committee Member: Eric Wallace
Writers: Steven Clapp & Alyssa Steitz
- What do I do after I submit my bracket?
Get involved in the conversation on the social media of your choice with hashtag #NephMadness. Support your picks, share your thoughts, and learn something!
- Are there prizes?
Yes! Grand Prizes for Top Overall Score, Top Medical Student Score, Top Resident Score, Top Fellow Score, and Top Attending Score
Each Grand Prize winner will receive a complimentary year-long personal subscription to Advances in Kidney Disease and Health and Nature Reviews Nephrology
- Can I submit multiple brackets?
Yes! For example, you may submit an individual bracket and one with your fellowship program (and then another if you want!)
Ready to play? Register and start filling out your bracket! You’ll have until March 31st 2026 to finalize and submit your picks. Who’s your champion?
See you out on the “court”!
Author: Srinath Yadlapalli, M.D
Reviewed by: Samira Farouk, M.D, Matthew A. Sparks, M.D
