Currently many kidney transplant recipients lose their Medicare coverage 36 months after receiving a transplant. In some cases these individuals are then unable to afford the cost of anti-rejection medications and subsequently lose their kidney. When this happens…
Often on rounds with medical students or housestaff we will review why a serum creatinine of 0.8 mg/dl in a 40 year old athlete… may mean a much higher creatinine clearance than a creatinine of 0.8 mg/dl in…
“A doctor, like a writer, must have a voice of his own, something that conveys the timbre, the rhythm, the diction, and the music of his humanity, that compensates us for all the speechless machines.” -Anatole BroyardIntoxicated by…
One of the true arts learned during renal fellowship is the timing of initiation of dialysis in outpatients with advanced chronic kidney disease. This a crucial skill to develop as the beginning of dialysis has major implications for…
As renal fellows, we are always involved in the most severe cases of hospital acquired AKI that require dialysis. Previously on RFN, we examined the impact that these cases have on the long term risk of ESRD. What…
Interesting case for the weekend: young woman with known lupus, baseline normal kidney function; admitted initially with headaches and “feeling more lupusy than usual”, found to have a creatinine of 2.5 on admission with some dysmorphic RBCs on…
It’s time again to compile the top nephrology-related stories of the year. Last years list was a great collection. Help us come up with this years list by voting for the ones that you feel deserve to make…
The gut posses a staggering number of bacteria. There are more bacteria living in our colons than there are human cells in our bodies. These microbes produce compounds, some of which are absorbed and eventually cleared by the…
The normal saline we use in the hospital contains 9 grams of sodium chloride per liter of water. If you look on the bag you will see 0.9% which is the mass concentration expressed as g/dl (0.9 grams…
Since moving to Baltimore, a city with a large African-American population, earlier this year, I have had the opportunity to see several interesting patients with sickle cell SS disease and renal complications. Here is a mention of some…
