The National Kidney Foundation showcased a global study led by Keisha Gibson, MD, MPH, chief of pediatric nephrology, designed to understand the experimental immunosuppressant drug Voclosporin as a treatment for patients with lupus kidney disease. The study “AURORA Phase 3 Trial Demonstrates Voclosporin Statistical Superiority Over Standard of Care in Lupus Nephritis (LN)” was selected as a … Continued

Jenny Flythe, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in the division of nephrology and hypertension, has received an award for $116,625 from the NIH National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), to conduct a pilot feasibility study of loop diuretics among individuals receiving hemodialysis. Flythe, who is medical director of UNC Hospital’s Dialysis … Continued

The kidneys control potassium levels in the body, which are important for nerve and muscle cell functioning, especially the heart. Gerald Hladik, MD, chief of the division of nephrology, recently contributed to a Livestrong.com article about the symptoms of potassium deficiency, along with treatment for the condition known as hypokalemia.

Charles Jennette, MD, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, and professor of medicine, has received the Robert H. Heptinstall Lifetime Achievement Award from the Renal Pathology Society (RPS). The honor was presented February 29 at the RPS Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, Ca. Jennette’s service, teaching and research activities focus on kidney disease. From 1999–2019, … Continued

After a review of the PEXIVAS trial, a large randomized clinical trial involving patients with ANCA vasculitis, Vimal K. Derebail, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of medicine in the division of nephrology and hypertension, and Ronald J. Falk, M.D, chair of the UNC Department of Medicine, have published their interpretation of these findings for patients with … Continued

Dr. Keia Sanderson is an assistant professor of medicine in the division of nephrology and hypertension, specializing in chronic kidney disease and dialysis, acute kidney injury and glomerular diseases. Where are you from? I am originally from Charlotte. I graduated from Rice University in Houston, Texas, and attended medical school at the University of Missouri. … Continued

The UNC Hypertension Clinic at Meadowmont has been awarded the American Heart Association’s Comprehensive Hypertension Center Certification to recognize the practice’s commitment to following proven, research-based treatment guidelines to care for people with complex or difficult-to-treat hypertension, or high blood pressure. “Nearly half of the American population over age 20 has hypertension and many do … Continued

Keisha Gibson, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics, and chief of pediatric nephrology, has been named vice chair of diversity and inclusion for the department of medicine. “We are delighted to welcome Dr. Gibson to this new position, leading our commitment to nurturing an environment of diversity inclusion,” said Ron Falk, MD, chair … Continued

“All autoimmune diseases have what are called relapsing and remitting tendencies,” says Ron Falk, MD, chair of the UNC Department of Medicine and co-director of the UNC Kidney Center, in a new patient’s guide. “You may have long periods where you feel relatively well followed by severe disease flare-ups or exacerbations.”

Abhijit Kshirsagar, MD, MPH, emphasizes the importance of kidney transplants in the editorial Transplant First, Dialysis Last, joined by Melina Kibbe, MD, chair of the department of surgery, and David Gerber, MD, from the division of abdominal transplant surgery. Published in JAMA Surgery, the editorial recognizes transplants as being cost-effective with the greatest survival advantage, extending life by 7 … Continued