Kidney disease is a very common condition among older adults, affecting close to half of seniors above the age of 75. Common diseases such as hypertension and diabetes cause damage to the kidneys over time, and aging itself causes a decline in kidney function. Kidney disease can go undiagnosed until it is very advanced, … Read more

April 15, 2023 marked the return of our Kidney Education and Outreach Program (KEOP) and community kidney screenings after a long break through the pandemic. At recent community events we focused on kidney health education, but we were excited to be able to offer kidney screenings this time. North Carolina Central University hosted the 9th … Read more

“When I was three, I was hit with a 104.7 fever in the middle of the night. I was soon rushed into my doctor. They couldn’t figure out where the fever was coming from and took a chance on checking to see if it was the result of a UTI. I was told my urine … Read more

“When I was three, I was hit with a 104.7 fever in the middle of the night. I was soon rushed into my doctor. They couldn’t figure out where the fever was coming from and took a chance on checking to see if it was the result of a UTI. I was told my urine … Read more

Abhijit V. Kshirsagar, MD MPH FASN, Covington Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Chief Medical Director of UNC Dialysis Care, and Medical Director of Carolina Dialysis in Siler City, represented the kidney world and the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) at the end of January, 2023. Dr. Kshirsagar spoke at the Virtual Value-based Payment Summit (January 23 … Read more

A Beautiful Day On a beautiful Sunday in May, Harris Lake County Park in Wake County was very busy, full of bicycle riders ready to take on the Raven Rock Ramble (RRR), a bicycle ride that explores the four-county area around Raven Rock State Park. The Raven Rock Ramble bicycle ride began in 2002 to … Read more

March is National Kidney Awareness Month, a time to highlight the importance of kidney disease. 37 million Americans have kidney disease, yet only about 10% of these individuals are aware of the diagnosis. Kidney disease may develop from a myriad of conditions, including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, vascular disease, nephrotoxic medications, autoimmune disorders, and genetic conditions. … Read more

Abhi Kshirsagar, MD, MPH, the Covington Distinguished Professor of Medicine in the Division of Nephrology and  Hypertension, participated in the “Controversies in optimal anemia management: Conclusions from a Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Conference.” Controversies Conferences review the latest evidence, explore new and ongoing controversies, assess change implications for the current KDIGO anemia guideline, … Read more

Christian Agosto-Burgos, a PhD candidate, was featured in Univision 40 North Carolina interviews about COVID-19. He explained to Spanish-speaking audiences how natural and vaccine-mediated immunity are different, why individuals develop the disease more than once, and why it is important to receive the two doses of the vaccine. Agosto-Burgos is pursuing his PhD in pathobiology … Read more

Donna Bunch, PhD Donna Bunch’s research focuses on dissecting the role of B cells and the autoantibodies they produce in autoimmune diseases affecting the kidney. She investigates the immune dysregulation that triggers production of pathogenic autoantibodies and how these autoantibodies interact with immune cells (B cells, neutrophils, monocytes and dendritic cells) to generate microparticles or … Read more