The potassium-sparing diuretics consist of the following 4 medications–only some of which (spironolactone & eplerenone in the list below) are structurally similar. Spironolactone is an antagonist of the aldosterone receptor, which like other steroid receptors is an…
A recent review in this month’s AJKD by Perl and Bargman describes the increasingly recognized importance of residual renal function in dialysis patients’ prognoses. Although the benefits of residual renal function are most obvious in patients undergoing peritoneal…
Couldn’t figure out how to embed the video so I’ve just posted the link of a daredevil who “exploded his kidney” (according to the video at least) during a bike jump. Just think, somewhere out there there’s a…
Having grown up in Minnesota and being a rabid sports fan, I have an obligation to closely follow the Minnesota Vikings, no matter how much trouble with the law the team has encountered in recent years. Here’s a…
Following up on the discussion of milk-alkali syndrome, a similar syndrome (hypercalcemia, metabolic alkalosis, and acute renal failure) may also occur due to betel nut chewing. Betel nut chewing is a common habit and cultural practice amongst Indian…
Heard about a case of milk-alkali syndrome at Renal Grand Rounds yesterday. This is an interesting condition whose pathophysiologic mechanism really tests your knowledge of calcium and acid-base homeostasis. I won’t attempt to chart the pathway but a…
Us renal fellows are likely to take for granted the fact that virtually all dialysis buffers used today are bicarbonate-based buffer systems. The bicarbonate-CO2 buffer system is the dominant buffer system in the human body, patients without renal…
A recent article just published in Nature Genetics by Kottgen et al identifies several loci which appear to confer susceptibility to the development of CKD. How did researchers identify these genes? By a genome-wide association study. Briefly, researchers…
The NBC show “30 Rock” featured a humorous, kidney-themed season finale last Thursday. If you don’t feel like watching the full 30-minute episode, you can purchase the full music video for the song “We Need A Kidney” at…
Alport’s Syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by glomerulonephritis, progression to ESRD, and hearing loss. Intriguingly, it can be inherited in either an X-linked, autosomal recessive, or autosomal dominant manner. Why is the inheritance pattern so complex and…
