From Eureka Alert
Kidney-resident macrophages -- a role for healing during acute kidney injury?
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - During development in the womb, immune cells called macrophages go to the kidneys, and they remain there for life. Understanding the possible healing role for these macrophages after kidney damage may be crucial to helping treat patients who suffer acute kidney injury.
Acute kidney injury, or AKI, is a devastating condition that develops in two-thirds of critically ill patients, and patients with AKI have a 60 percent risk of dying. In AKI, kidneys can become scarred and can show progressive decline in function, becoming unable to heal their tissue.
In a JCI Insight study published today, University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have found that, during AKI in a mouse model, the kidney-resident macrophages are reprogrammed to a developmental state, resembling these same cells when they are found in newborn mice. Newborn mouse kidneys are still developing. This reprogramming during AKI may be important to promote healing and tissue regeneration. If a similar developmental shift is seen for human kidney-resident macrophages during AKI, that could aid new therapeutic approaches for patients.
The experimental challenge in this study was distinguishing the kidney-resident macrophages from the many cells that invade the kidney from blood circulation in response to kidney damage. Some of these invading cell types can differentiate into macrophages and dendritic cells in the kidney, and it was unknown whether some of the invaders become kidney-resident macrophages.
The UAB researchers used parabiosis -- the linking of the blood circulatory systems between two mice -- to reveal whether the kidney-resident macrophages after AKI were from invading precursors or from renewal by existing kidney-resident macrophages in the kidney.
In the parabiosis experiments, two mice shared blood circulation for four weeks, and then one underwent ischemia/reperfusion-induced AKI. Because the immune cells of the two mice have different surface markers that identify which mouse they come from, researchers could follow the invasion of the AKI kidneys by circulating immune cells from the healthy mouse. They found that the infiltrating cells contributed only minimally to the kidney-resident macrophage cell pool in the damaged kidneys.
Thus, after kidney injury, the kidney-resident macrophages are a distinct cellular subpopulation that does not differentiate from nonresident, infiltrating, precursor immune cells.
Researchers, led by co-senior authors Anupam Agarwal, M.D., director of the Division of Nephrology in the UAB Department of Medicine, and James George, Ph.D., professor in the UAB Department of Surgery, detailed how the kidney-resident macrophages are reprogrammed to a developmental state after injury. In response to the disease model, the kidney-resident macrophages turned off their expression of major histocompatibility complex type II, or MHCII. This lack of expression is similar to kidney-resident macrophages in newborn mice -- those mice, the researchers showed, lack expression of this protein up to postnatal day seven, and then begin to express it over the next two weeks. Notably, MHCII protein and macrophages have important roles in autoimmunity and transplant rejection.
In addition, kidney-resident macrophages after AKI underwent transcriptional reprogramming to express a gene profile closely resembling that of the kidney-resident macrophages in newborn mice at postnatal day seven. Further supporting their role in development and healing, the reprogrammed kidney-resident macrophages were enriched in Wnt signaling, an active pathway that is vital for mouse and human kidney development.
Co-first authors of the JCI Insight study, "Resident macrophages reprogram toward a developmental state after acute kidney injury," are Jeremie M. Lever and Travis D. Hull, M.D., Ph.D., who are trainees from the NIH-funded UAB Medical Scientist Training Program, an M.D., Ph.D. program.
"Macrophage biology has reached a pivotal point," said Lever, a UAB graduate student and NIH F31 individual fellow. Many basic science research studies have suggested the importance for tissue-resident macrophages in healing after injury, but development of therapies promoting them is still in early stages, Lever says. "In order to successfully utilize these cells for contemporary translational interventions, I believe we will need to be specific about the origin -- tissue-resident versus infiltrative -- of the cells we plan to target."
Hull, now a surgery resident at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, said, "This work demonstrates that tissue resident macrophages possess the same plasticity that has been demonstrated in other immunological cell types. Moreover, this ability to reprogram to an early ontological phenotype is a potential avenue for therapeutic intervention, if the cellular signals and mechanisms of this reprogramming can be fully elucidated.
"This is an exciting development in the field of acute kidney injury," Hull said, "but also may represent a therapeutic target in fields such as transplantation, where the importance of macrophage biology is less well understood."
This work was supported by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases grants DK59600, DK115752, DK097423, DK115169, DK116672 and DK103931, and also the core resource of the UAB-UCSD O'Brien Center for AKI Research, DK079337. Additional support came from the Office of Research and Development, Medical Research Service, Department of Veterans Affairs grant BX00229; the Polycystic Kidney Disease Research Foundation grant 214G16A; the UAB School of Medicine AMC21; and the UAB Medical Scientist Training Program grant GM008361.
From Renal and Urology News
A recent article in The New England Journal of Medicine titled “Diagnostic Utility of Exome Sequencing for Kidney Disease” offers us unique insights into the future diagnostic evaluation of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The most important takeaways from the article by Groopman etal. are that nearly 1 in 10 patients with CKD have a genetic cause of kidney disease, which often is undiagnosed, and that whole exome sequencing can be helpful in making these diagnoses.
The investigators undertook whole exome sequencing of 3315 individuals with CKD. In whole exome sequencing, the nucleotide sequence of the human genome that codes for proteins (exons) is determined. Results were compared with exome sequences of thousands of healthy individuals to determine genetic differences. The investigators focused attention on genes that were expressed in the kidney and were likely to be relevant to kidney pathology.
The study found that 307 patients (9.3%) suffered from a monogenic disorder as the cause of kidney disease, with 66 different genetic conditions identified. As one would expect, autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease was the most common cause, with 97 individuals affected (accounting for 2.9% of cases of kidney disease and 31% of cases with inherited kidney disease). The next most common causes of inherited kidney disease were mutations in the COL4A3, COL4A4, and COL4A5 genes, found in 91 individuals (30% of inherited kidney disease). Importantly, 39 of the 66 genetic disorders identified were each found in only a single individual. Uncommon genetic disorders included mutations in the gene encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor-1 beta and branchio-oto-renal syndrome.
These results point to a future when whole exome sequencing will be the method of choice for identifying genetic causes of CKD. Instead of targeted gene analysis (for example, in Alport syndrome or polycystic kidney disease), clinicians will screen the whole genome at once. Study findings should encourage nephrologists to take a more thorough family history and give greater consideration to inherited kidney diseases in the differential diagnosis. Nephrologists should more actively pursue a genetic diagnosis, especially when multiple family members have CKD.
Although many of the inherited kidney diseases are not currently treatable, a proper genetic diagnosis will provide families with the cause of CKD, avoid unnecessary kidney biopsies that may not be diagnostic, and allow for screening of family members as potential kidney donors. This year, let us resolve to think more not just about our own families, but the families we see with kidney disease.
From US News & World Report, By Elaine K. Howley, Contributor
My Baby Was Born Too Early. Now What?
WHEN MARTHA WILLIAMS' daughter Avery arrived seven years ago, she was so tiny that her father's wedding band could easily slide onto her forearm, all the way up near the elbow. Avery had been born nearly three months too soon, and her first weeks of life were a challenging time for her family.
Williams was 33 years old at the time, and Avery was her first child. An avid marathon runner living near St. Louis, Missouri, Williams says the first 23 weeks of the pregnancy went smoothly. But she has a chronic condition called polycystic kidney disease that causes high blood pressure, among other problems. At the 25-week appointment, Williams' feet were swollen, her blood pressure had spiked and Avery hadn't grown as much as she should have. Williams' doctor was alarmed and wouldn't let her leave the hospital, consigning her to bedrest in hopes that would delay Avery's birth. "I only made it a week," Williams says, before the situation became dangerous and Avery needed to make her own way into the world.
"Those first few days were really critical," Williams says. "She almost died the second night," but Avery hung in there, a turn of events Williams characterizes as "a huge answer to prayers. We don't know what happened and the doctors couldn't explain it," she says. There were other scares during Avery's 128 days in the hospital, and Williams says keeping a positive attitude during the roller-coaster ordeal was important.
Avery's dramatic entry to the world is not as uncommon as one might hope. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that preterm birth – which is defined as a birth prior to 37 weeks – affected about 1 in 10 infants born in the United States in 2016. While human gestation typically lasts 40 weeks, babies born between 37 and 40 weeks are considered full-term births. Babies who arrive prior to 37 weeks' gestation are referred to as preterm deliveries, premature births or preemies.
Babies born at 28 weeks or less gestation are considered extremely preterm and their survival is far from guaranteed. Dr. Daniel F. Roshan, a high-risk maternal-fetal obstetrician-gynecologist at Rosh Maternal & Fetal Medicine in New York City and clinical assistant professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at NYU Langone Health, says that while "neonatology science has improved tremendously and these days, many more very early preterm babies are surviving," there's a lot of development that still needs to occur in babies born extremely preterm, and that brings opportunity for complications.
He says that survival rates vary by hospital, but prior to 23 weeks, it's virtually impossible for a baby to survive outside the womb. Each additional week spent in utero corresponds to a higher chance of survival. "At 28 weeks, 90 percent of babies survive. At 31 weeks, 99 percent survive," Roshan says.
Over the course of a normal pregnancy, the fetus undergoes a staggering amount of growth and development within the mother's womb, and every day longer inside the mother's body is usually considered a good thing in terms of giving the baby a chance to thrive in the outside world. However, there are times when, for the health of the mother or the baby, the baby is born earlier than would be considered ideal.
Most full-term babies measure between 19 and 21 inches long and weigh about 5 to 9 pounds, but a preterm infant is much smaller. Babies born at 27 weeks are only about 14.4 inches long and typically weigh just under 2 pounds. By 37 weeks, a baby has usually reached more than 19 inches long and usually weighs over 6 pounds, so a lot of growth and development occurs during that 10 weeks of gestation.
What Causes Preterm Births?
Dr. Jose Perez, medical director of neonatology and perinatal medicine at Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies, says chorioamnionitis, a bacterial infection within the amniotic sac, is one reason why some women will deliver a baby too soon, and this typically causes a very early delivery. Another cause is related to a structural issue in the cervix, called incompetent cervix, in which "the mom's cervix is not structurally long enough" to accommodate the growing baby.
Roshan notes that some in some women, the cervix doesn't "grow or expand the right way," making it difficult for the pregnancy to continue. Some women also have structural issues with the uterus that make carrying a baby to term challenging. The placenta can also separate too early, meaning that the baby isn't being fed properly. Genetic disorders can trigger very early preterm births in some women.
Later in the pregnancy, a common reason babies arrive prior to their due date is because of high blood pressure in the mother, a dangerous condition called preeclampsia. Sometimes, "we need to deliver the baby early for the mom's own health," Perez says.
Preterm labor is also associated with multiple births, an increasingly common occurrence these days in the age of in vitro fertilization. Perez says twins can typically be carried "pretty close to term," but "triplets for sure won't and septuplets won't get close to term. Every multiple makes it harder for that to happen."
Who's at Risk of Premature Delivery?
While it's difficult to predict who's most likely to deliver a baby too early, some women seem more likely to deliver preterm, specifically teenagers and those over the age of 35. The CDC also reports that black women have a higher rate of preterm births than white women – 14 percent versus 9 percent. Roshan says women with a history of delivering prematurely may be more likely to deliver a second baby preterm and should seek the support of a high-risk OB-GYN to make sure the pregnancy is progressing properly. Women who have chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and autoimmune disorders may also be at higher-risk of delivering preterm.
The CDC reports that "in most cases, preterm labor (labor that happens too soon, before 37 weeks of pregnancy) begins unexpectedly and the cause is unknown." Signs that you might be going into labor are:
Contractions or cramps – powerful muscle movements in the abdomen that occur every 10 minutes or more often, or cramping that feels like a menstrual period
A change in vaginal discharge – either a large amount of fluid or blood coming from the vagina
Pressure in the pelvis or a backache.
Any of these signs should send you immediately to the hospital or your OB-GYN's office for evaluation. Perez says you should also seek help if you develop any of the signs of preeclampsia, which are similar to those of high blood pressure: bad headache, blurred vision, nausea or vomiting, swelling in the extremities, reduced or no urine output or rapid weight gain, which may be associated with fluid retention.
How Can I Reduce My Chances of a Preterm Delivery?
Being prepared for a preterm birth should be part of your routine prenatal care program. "Preparation for preterm birth starts before the baby arrives," Perez says. Your OB-GYN will run certain tests to assess your risk of delivering preterm, and if you are at risk, a team can be assembled to address that need.
Read more
Flu May Be a Factor in Many Kidney Failure Deaths
The investigators undertook whole exome sequencing of 3315 individuals with CKD. In whole exome sequencing, the nucleotide sequence of the human genome that codes for proteins (exons) is determined. Results were compared with exome sequences of thousands of healthy individuals to determine genetic differences. The investigators focused attention on genes that were expressed in the kidney and were likely to be relevant to kidney pathology.
The study found that 307 patients (9.3%) suffered from a monogenic disorder as the cause of kidney disease, with 66 different genetic conditions identified. As one would expect, autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease was the most common cause, with 97 individuals affected (accounting for 2.9% of cases of kidney disease and 31% of cases with inherited kidney disease). The next most common causes of inherited kidney disease were mutations in the COL4A3, COL4A4, and COL4A5 genes, found in 91 individuals (30% of inherited kidney disease). Importantly, 39 of the 66 genetic disorders identified were each found in only a single individual. Uncommon genetic disorders included mutations in the gene encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor-1 beta and branchio-oto-renal syndrome.
These results point to a future when whole exome sequencing will be the method of choice for identifying genetic causes of CKD. Instead of targeted gene analysis (for example, in Alport syndrome or polycystic kidney disease), clinicians will screen the whole genome at once. Study findings should encourage nephrologists to take a more thorough family history and give greater consideration to inherited kidney diseases in the differential diagnosis. Nephrologists should more actively pursue a genetic diagnosis, especially when multiple family members have CKD.
Although many of the inherited kidney diseases are not currently treatable, a proper genetic diagnosis will provide families with the cause of CKD, avoid unnecessary kidney biopsies that may not be diagnostic, and allow for screening of family members as potential kidney donors. This year, let us resolve to think more not just about our own families, but the families we see with kidney disease.
Living with PKD
WHEN MARTHA WILLIAMS' daughter Avery arrived seven years ago, she was so tiny that her father's wedding band could easily slide onto her forearm, all the way up near the elbow. Avery had been born nearly three months too soon, and her first weeks of life were a challenging time for her family.
Williams was 33 years old at the time, and Avery was her first child. An avid marathon runner living near St. Louis, Missouri, Williams says the first 23 weeks of the pregnancy went smoothly. But she has a chronic condition called polycystic kidney disease that causes high blood pressure, among other problems. At the 25-week appointment, Williams' feet were swollen, her blood pressure had spiked and Avery hadn't grown as much as she should have. Williams' doctor was alarmed and wouldn't let her leave the hospital, consigning her to bedrest in hopes that would delay Avery's birth. "I only made it a week," Williams says, before the situation became dangerous and Avery needed to make her own way into the world.
"Those first few days were really critical," Williams says. "She almost died the second night," but Avery hung in there, a turn of events Williams characterizes as "a huge answer to prayers. We don't know what happened and the doctors couldn't explain it," she says. There were other scares during Avery's 128 days in the hospital, and Williams says keeping a positive attitude during the roller-coaster ordeal was important.
Avery's dramatic entry to the world is not as uncommon as one might hope. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that preterm birth – which is defined as a birth prior to 37 weeks – affected about 1 in 10 infants born in the United States in 2016. While human gestation typically lasts 40 weeks, babies born between 37 and 40 weeks are considered full-term births. Babies who arrive prior to 37 weeks' gestation are referred to as preterm deliveries, premature births or preemies.
Babies born at 28 weeks or less gestation are considered extremely preterm and their survival is far from guaranteed. Dr. Daniel F. Roshan, a high-risk maternal-fetal obstetrician-gynecologist at Rosh Maternal & Fetal Medicine in New York City and clinical assistant professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at NYU Langone Health, says that while "neonatology science has improved tremendously and these days, many more very early preterm babies are surviving," there's a lot of development that still needs to occur in babies born extremely preterm, and that brings opportunity for complications.
He says that survival rates vary by hospital, but prior to 23 weeks, it's virtually impossible for a baby to survive outside the womb. Each additional week spent in utero corresponds to a higher chance of survival. "At 28 weeks, 90 percent of babies survive. At 31 weeks, 99 percent survive," Roshan says.
Over the course of a normal pregnancy, the fetus undergoes a staggering amount of growth and development within the mother's womb, and every day longer inside the mother's body is usually considered a good thing in terms of giving the baby a chance to thrive in the outside world. However, there are times when, for the health of the mother or the baby, the baby is born earlier than would be considered ideal.
Most full-term babies measure between 19 and 21 inches long and weigh about 5 to 9 pounds, but a preterm infant is much smaller. Babies born at 27 weeks are only about 14.4 inches long and typically weigh just under 2 pounds. By 37 weeks, a baby has usually reached more than 19 inches long and usually weighs over 6 pounds, so a lot of growth and development occurs during that 10 weeks of gestation.
What Causes Preterm Births?
Dr. Jose Perez, medical director of neonatology and perinatal medicine at Orlando Health Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies, says chorioamnionitis, a bacterial infection within the amniotic sac, is one reason why some women will deliver a baby too soon, and this typically causes a very early delivery. Another cause is related to a structural issue in the cervix, called incompetent cervix, in which "the mom's cervix is not structurally long enough" to accommodate the growing baby.
Roshan notes that some in some women, the cervix doesn't "grow or expand the right way," making it difficult for the pregnancy to continue. Some women also have structural issues with the uterus that make carrying a baby to term challenging. The placenta can also separate too early, meaning that the baby isn't being fed properly. Genetic disorders can trigger very early preterm births in some women.
Later in the pregnancy, a common reason babies arrive prior to their due date is because of high blood pressure in the mother, a dangerous condition called preeclampsia. Sometimes, "we need to deliver the baby early for the mom's own health," Perez says.
Preterm labor is also associated with multiple births, an increasingly common occurrence these days in the age of in vitro fertilization. Perez says twins can typically be carried "pretty close to term," but "triplets for sure won't and septuplets won't get close to term. Every multiple makes it harder for that to happen."
Who's at Risk of Premature Delivery?
While it's difficult to predict who's most likely to deliver a baby too early, some women seem more likely to deliver preterm, specifically teenagers and those over the age of 35. The CDC also reports that black women have a higher rate of preterm births than white women – 14 percent versus 9 percent. Roshan says women with a history of delivering prematurely may be more likely to deliver a second baby preterm and should seek the support of a high-risk OB-GYN to make sure the pregnancy is progressing properly. Women who have chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and autoimmune disorders may also be at higher-risk of delivering preterm.
The CDC reports that "in most cases, preterm labor (labor that happens too soon, before 37 weeks of pregnancy) begins unexpectedly and the cause is unknown." Signs that you might be going into labor are:
Contractions or cramps – powerful muscle movements in the abdomen that occur every 10 minutes or more often, or cramping that feels like a menstrual period
A change in vaginal discharge – either a large amount of fluid or blood coming from the vagina
Pressure in the pelvis or a backache.
Any of these signs should send you immediately to the hospital or your OB-GYN's office for evaluation. Perez says you should also seek help if you develop any of the signs of preeclampsia, which are similar to those of high blood pressure: bad headache, blurred vision, nausea or vomiting, swelling in the extremities, reduced or no urine output or rapid weight gain, which may be associated with fluid retention.
How Can I Reduce My Chances of a Preterm Delivery?
Being prepared for a preterm birth should be part of your routine prenatal care program. "Preparation for preterm birth starts before the baby arrives," Perez says. Your OB-GYN will run certain tests to assess your risk of delivering preterm, and if you are at risk, a team can be assembled to address that need.
Read more
From Healthy Day
Seasonal flu and other respiratory infections may be especially dangerous for kidney failure patients, researchers say.
A new study found that influenza-like illnesses likely contribute to more than 1,000 deaths among kidney failure patients in the United States each year. These illnesses include potentially serious respiratory tract infections caused by flu and other viruses.
According to the study authors, death rates among kidney failure patients are high, and have seasonal fluctuations. In addition, they noted that influenza-like illnesses disproportionately affect vulnerable people, such as those with end-stage kidney disease, and peak during colder months.
The degree to which these flu-like illnesses contribute to death in kidney failure patients is unclear, so the researchers decided to investigate the link.
For the study, David Gilbertson, co-director of the Chronic Disease Research Group at Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute in Minneapolis, and his colleagues reviewed 14 years of federal data.
The team analyzed the data to determine influenza-like illness and kidney failure death rates in each quarter of the year. Flu season occurs in the fourth quarter (Q4) of each year and the first quarter (Q1) of the following year.
In Q4, a 1 percent increase in flu-like illnesses was associated with a 1.5 percent rise in deaths among patients with kidney failure, compared to the average death rate in Q3 (summer), the findings showed.
And, in Q1, a 1 percent increase in flu-like illnesses was associated with a 2 percent higher rate of deaths among kidney failure patients, compared to summer rates.
The findings highlight the importance of prevention of and treatment of flu-like illnesses in kidney failure patients, the researchers said in a news release from the American Society of Nephrology.
Gilbertson said the timing of deaths dovetailed with peaks in influenza and similar illnesses, and more deaths than expected occurred in years when flu and other respiratory illnesses were particularly bad.
"While influenza-like illnesses may not be the direct cause of death in [kidney failure] patients, it may contribute to other causes of death; for example, patients with influenza-like illnesses may experience a state of acute inflammation, making them vulnerable to other infections or cardiovascular events," Gilbertson explained in the news release.
Two strategies to protect kidney patients against flu and other respiratory illnesses could include stepped up disinfection efforts at kidney dialysis units during winter months, and making sure all patients get a flu shot each year, he suggested.
The study was published Jan. 24 in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
Local volunteer leaders give an inside look at the Detroit Chapter
Greetings from Kim and Mike Ahrens! We are Co-Coordinators for the Detroit Chapter along with Cheryl Sherman. Our PKD journey began when Kim was diagnosed with PKD in 2005 while she served as Executive Director of Finance in Grand Rapids for Booth Newspapers/Advance Publications. Prior to her diagnosis, there was no family history of PKD, so we had a steep learning curve. After Kim was airlifted from Muskegon to Ann Arbor for life-saving treatment, our lifestyle took a dramatic turn. Both of us retired from our professions and relocated to Ann Arbor to be near Kim’s team of doctors at the University of Michigan Health System. Mike was an educator and basketball coach; he continues to enjoy coaching a local high school varsity basketball team. Plus, we have two daughters, Carly and Hayden, who live in the greater Detroit area, so being near them is rewarding.
Our involvement with the Detroit Chapter started in 2013 when we moved to Ann Arbor. We quickly discovered that it is easy to become an active member in a local chapter no matter where you live; there are no set boundaries. When we attended our first Walk for PKD, along with several members of our family and friends, it was inspirational and rewarding to finally meet others in the PKD community who are traveling the same journey, just along another path. We didn’t realize it at the time, but the Walk for PKD was just the beginning for Team Ahrens.
Participants from the 2018 Bookstore Crawl
Kim has a passion for reading and enjoys browsing bookstores. On one occasion, Mike was waiting outside and happened to see a pub trolley pass by. Team Ahrens wasted no time in conceiving and implementing an event known as the Downtown Ann Arbor PKD Bookstore Crawl. Ann Arbor has 10 independent bookstores within a few blocks, so for the event, our participants spend the day perusing books, walking, reading, shopping, exploring and dining. Family, friends, educators, readers and authors support Team Ahrens through donations, silent auction, education and raising awareness of PKD. While walking a designated route in teams, participants distribute bookmarks featuring PKD facts and contact information to anyone expressing interest. Our event has grown from 13 to 55 participants in the last five years.
A couple more unique events Team Ahrens has hosted include:
Movie Night – Screened a DVD movie release complete with popcorn, pizza and prizes
March Madness Bracket Contest – Entries include men’s and women’s NCAA tournament brackets
Kim with Teal Night Out speaker, Dr. Greg VandenHeuvel
Our most recent event, Teal Out Night, originated through collaboration from Mike and one of his basketball contacts at West Michigan Aviation Academy (WMAA)located in Grand Rapids, Mich. We conducted an informational meeting with WMAA student council and advisors to educate and answer questions regarding PKD in an effort to be selected as the non-profit organization benefiting from their weeklong activities and fundraisers. These included:
T-shirt Sales
Penny Wars in Classrooms
Silent Auction
Information Table
1 Minute Bucket Collection
Kim and Dr. Greg VandenHeuvel (WMU) spoke at half time of two basketball games held on Dec. 7, 2018. This was a rewarding endeavor and we hope to make it an annual event.
Being involved with the Detroit Chapter has allowed us to grow in knowledge, understanding, support and recognition for the PKD community as a whole. Finding a PKD chapter will aid in ways you never thought possible. Why? Because you are not alone in the fight against PKD.
If you’re interested in volunteering with your local PKD Foundation Chapter, sign up here to get involved!
A new study found that influenza-like illnesses likely contribute to more than 1,000 deaths among kidney failure patients in the United States each year. These illnesses include potentially serious respiratory tract infections caused by flu and other viruses.
According to the study authors, death rates among kidney failure patients are high, and have seasonal fluctuations. In addition, they noted that influenza-like illnesses disproportionately affect vulnerable people, such as those with end-stage kidney disease, and peak during colder months.
The degree to which these flu-like illnesses contribute to death in kidney failure patients is unclear, so the researchers decided to investigate the link.
For the study, David Gilbertson, co-director of the Chronic Disease Research Group at Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute in Minneapolis, and his colleagues reviewed 14 years of federal data.
The team analyzed the data to determine influenza-like illness and kidney failure death rates in each quarter of the year. Flu season occurs in the fourth quarter (Q4) of each year and the first quarter (Q1) of the following year.
In Q4, a 1 percent increase in flu-like illnesses was associated with a 1.5 percent rise in deaths among patients with kidney failure, compared to the average death rate in Q3 (summer), the findings showed.
And, in Q1, a 1 percent increase in flu-like illnesses was associated with a 2 percent higher rate of deaths among kidney failure patients, compared to summer rates.
The findings highlight the importance of prevention of and treatment of flu-like illnesses in kidney failure patients, the researchers said in a news release from the American Society of Nephrology.
Gilbertson said the timing of deaths dovetailed with peaks in influenza and similar illnesses, and more deaths than expected occurred in years when flu and other respiratory illnesses were particularly bad.
"While influenza-like illnesses may not be the direct cause of death in [kidney failure] patients, it may contribute to other causes of death; for example, patients with influenza-like illnesses may experience a state of acute inflammation, making them vulnerable to other infections or cardiovascular events," Gilbertson explained in the news release.
Two strategies to protect kidney patients against flu and other respiratory illnesses could include stepped up disinfection efforts at kidney dialysis units during winter months, and making sure all patients get a flu shot each year, he suggested.
The study was published Jan. 24 in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
PKD Foundation
From PKD Foundation Blog
Our involvement with the Detroit Chapter started in 2013 when we moved to Ann Arbor. We quickly discovered that it is easy to become an active member in a local chapter no matter where you live; there are no set boundaries. When we attended our first Walk for PKD, along with several members of our family and friends, it was inspirational and rewarding to finally meet others in the PKD community who are traveling the same journey, just along another path. We didn’t realize it at the time, but the Walk for PKD was just the beginning for Team Ahrens.
Participants from the 2018 Bookstore Crawl
Kim has a passion for reading and enjoys browsing bookstores. On one occasion, Mike was waiting outside and happened to see a pub trolley pass by. Team Ahrens wasted no time in conceiving and implementing an event known as the Downtown Ann Arbor PKD Bookstore Crawl. Ann Arbor has 10 independent bookstores within a few blocks, so for the event, our participants spend the day perusing books, walking, reading, shopping, exploring and dining. Family, friends, educators, readers and authors support Team Ahrens through donations, silent auction, education and raising awareness of PKD. While walking a designated route in teams, participants distribute bookmarks featuring PKD facts and contact information to anyone expressing interest. Our event has grown from 13 to 55 participants in the last five years.
A couple more unique events Team Ahrens has hosted include:
Movie Night – Screened a DVD movie release complete with popcorn, pizza and prizes
March Madness Bracket Contest – Entries include men’s and women’s NCAA tournament brackets
Kim with Teal Night Out speaker, Dr. Greg VandenHeuvel
Our most recent event, Teal Out Night, originated through collaboration from Mike and one of his basketball contacts at West Michigan Aviation Academy (WMAA)located in Grand Rapids, Mich. We conducted an informational meeting with WMAA student council and advisors to educate and answer questions regarding PKD in an effort to be selected as the non-profit organization benefiting from their weeklong activities and fundraisers. These included:
T-shirt Sales
Penny Wars in Classrooms
Silent Auction
Information Table
1 Minute Bucket Collection
Kim and Dr. Greg VandenHeuvel (WMU) spoke at half time of two basketball games held on Dec. 7, 2018. This was a rewarding endeavor and we hope to make it an annual event.
Being involved with the Detroit Chapter has allowed us to grow in knowledge, understanding, support and recognition for the PKD community as a whole. Finding a PKD chapter will aid in ways you never thought possible. Why? Because you are not alone in the fight against PKD.
If you’re interested in volunteering with your local PKD Foundation Chapter, sign up here to get involved!
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