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The Kidney and Urinary Tract Center

Kidney Support for Babies: Building a Comprehensive and Integrated Neonatal Kidney Support Therapy Program
 Kidney Support for Babies: Building a Comprehensive and Integrated Neonatal Kidney Support Therapy Program 1024 575 Lauren Dembeck
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Nurse caring for infant in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

Kidney support therapy (KST), commonly referred to as dialysis, is a life-saving procedure used to manage complications associated with acute kidney injury and kidney failure, such as fluid overload and electrolyte imbalances, or to remove toxins, such as those in patients with inborn errors of metabolism. Most KST or dialysis machines are designed for adults…

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High-Risk Genotype Impacts Kidney Disease Trajectory
 High-Risk Genotype Impacts Kidney Disease Trajectory 1024 575 Mary Bates, PhD
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conceptual art of DNA

Patients with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis that possess two variations in the APOL1 gene experience more rapid progression of kidney disease. In a new study, researchers from Nationwide Children’s and other institutions quantified the relationship between a high-risk genotype and kidney disease progression in patients with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). The researchers leveraged data from the…

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Nephrology Education Ripe With Opportunities to Improve Health Equity
 Nephrology Education Ripe With Opportunities to Improve Health Equity 1024 575 Katie Brind'Amour, PhD, MS, CHES
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The Health Care Justice Committee of the American Society of Nephrology has released recommendations for incorporating anti-racism and social justice concepts into education and mentoring with the goal of improving health equity.   In 2020, leaders in the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) reached out to Ray Bignall II, MD, pediatric nephrologist and assistant chief…

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Featured Researcher — Linda Baker, MD
 Featured Researcher — Linda Baker, MD 150 150 Natalie Wilson
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Linda Baker, MD, a renowned expert in prune belly syndrome (PBS), joined Nationwide Children’s as a research director and principal investigator in the Kidney and Urinary Tract Center and The Ohio State University as a clinical professor of Urology at the end of 2022. Dr. Baker has met, evaluated and cared for over 180 children…

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5 Things to Know About Prune Belly Syndrome
 5 Things to Know About Prune Belly Syndrome 1024 683 Abbie Miller
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Linda Baker, MD

Linda Baker, MD, urologist, principal investigator, and one of the world’s foremost experts on prune belly syndrome, recently joined Nationwide Children’s Hospital as the co-director of the Kidney and Urinary Tract Center. She shares some important things to know about this rare disease. 1. Prune belly is a rare, congenital malformation. Prune belly syndrome (PBS)…

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Real-World Urinary Management and Outcomes in Cloacal Exstrophy Among Children and Adults
 Real-World Urinary Management and Outcomes in Cloacal Exstrophy Among Children and Adults 1024 683 Jessica Nye, PhD
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Molly Fuchs, MD

Most (94%) older children and adults with cloacal exstrophy are managed by incontinent diversion or clean intermittent catheterization. “The published literature about cloacal exstrophy can be misleading, and there is an impression that with surgical bladder reconstruction, normal bladder function and voiding can be restored. That is to say, a child will be able to…

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Is There a Role for D-Mannose, Cranberry or Probiotics in Preventing Pediatric UTIs?
 Is There a Role for D-Mannose, Cranberry or Probiotics in Preventing Pediatric UTIs? 1024 683 Deborah L. Ungerleider, MD, FAAP
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Alternatives for prophylaxis of UTIs in children may help reduce antibiotic overuse. Preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs) in children is important, as multiple UTIs can lead to scarring of the kidneys, which can then lead to hypertension or end-stage renal disease.1 UTIs in children are generally treated with antibiotics, which are sometimes also used for…

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Featured Researcher — Ashley Jackson, PhD
 Featured Researcher — Ashley Jackson, PhD 150 150 Natalie Wilson
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Ashley Jackson, PhD, is a principal investigator in The Kidney and Urinary Tract Center at Nationwide Children’s studying renal urothelium, the special surface tissue that lines most of the urinary tract, or the drainage system of the kidneys, to slow kidney disease progression in children with urinary tract obstruction (UTO), or a blockage that prevents…

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Novel Compound Shows Promise for Treating Nephrotic Syndrome
 Novel Compound Shows Promise for Treating Nephrotic Syndrome 1024 575 Mary Bates, PhD
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PPARγ selective modulator appear to be more efficacious in reducing proteinuria and comorbidities, and has fewer side effects than a traditional PPARγ agonist in a preclinical model of nephrotic syndrome. Nephrotic syndrome, characterized by high proteinuria, is one of the most common forms of glomerular disease. It is typically associated with edema, hypercholesterolemia, hypoalbuminemia, systemic…

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Practical, At-Home Parasacral Nerve Stimulation for Overactive Bladder in Children
 Practical, At-Home Parasacral Nerve Stimulation for Overactive Bladder in Children 150 150 Mary Bates, PhD
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A new regimen for parasacral transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is manageable and results in subjective improvements, though objective improvements were modest. In a new study, researchers from Nationwide Children’s evaluated the effectiveness of a practical, at-home regimen of parasacral transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) for children with overactive bladder. Parasacral TENS involves electrical stimulation…

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How the Antimicrobial Protein RNase 7 Helps Prevent Urinary Tract Infections
 How the Antimicrobial Protein RNase 7 Helps Prevent Urinary Tract Infections 1024 683 Mary Bates, PhD
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Researchers identify genetic variation associated with severe and recurrent UTIs. A new study adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting the antimicrobial protein RNase 7 plays an important role in preventing urinary tract infections (UTIs). The findings, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, suggest genetic variations in the RNase 7 gene may increase…

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Old Drug, New Use
 Old Drug, New Use 1024 575 Katie Brind'Amour, PhD, MS, CHES
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Nationwide Children's style illustration showing a row of houses with a prescription in front of it

Researchers have discovered an adult diabetes drug may provide a new and better way to treat children  with nephrotic syndrome.  Nephrotic syndrome is one of the most common kidney diseases seen in children. In most cases the cause is unknown. Nephrotic syndrome involves damage to the filtering units of the kidneys (glomeruli) leading to massive…

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Kidney and Urinary Tract Protein Demonstrates Antimicrobial Activity
 Kidney and Urinary Tract Protein Demonstrates Antimicrobial Activity 1024 683 Lauren Dembeck
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A little-studied peptide found in the urinary tract is a potential biomarker for urinary tract infection risk and could be developed into a novel therapeutic against drug-resistant bacteria.  Researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have demonstrated that an understudied protein expressed in the human kidney and bladder kills the bacteria that cause urinary tract infections (UTI).…

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Incidence and Impact of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients With Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
 Incidence and Impact of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients With Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome 150 150 Abbie Miller
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While incidence of severe kidney injury after surgery for hypoplastic left heart syndrome is low, it may be linked to increased 30-day mortality. Acute kidney injury – the abrupt decline of renal function – following pediatric heart surgery leads to worse outcomes, including increased mortality. The overall incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) after pediatric…

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Largest Study of Glomerular Diseases Sheds Light on Pediatric Subtypes
 Largest Study of Glomerular Diseases Sheds Light on Pediatric Subtypes 150 150 Cyndie Trapasso
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In one of the first papers published from the largest study of glomerular diseases, researchers have found significant differences between patients who have IgA nephropathy and a subtype of the disease, IgA vasculitis, and between children and adults with these diagnoses. The paper is from Cure Glomerulonephropathy (CureGN) — a longitudinal observational study of nearly…

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