Active clinical trials for "Kidney Failure, Chronic"

This study, done in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland, will examine the role of genes in the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) in patients undergoing kidney dialysis. The rate of illness and death from CVD among patients on dialysis is extraordinarily high, accounting for about 50 percent of deaths. Blood levels of inflammatory markers are elevated in these patients, strongly predicting illness and death from CVD. The discovery of gene variants related to the inflammatory process in atherosclerotic CVD may lead to better medical treatments and improved survival in patients with end-stage kidney disease. Participants of John's Hopkins University's CHOICE (Choices for Healthy Outcomes in Caring for End-Stage Renal Disease) program are included in this study. Blood samples previously collected from these patients will be analyzed in the laboratory for genes that might be associated with the inflammatory process and atherogenesis.

Asymmetric dimethylarginine, ADMA, in plasma, is significantly elevated in patients with renal disease and associated with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. We found that whole blood (WB) possesses the metabolic pathways required for both the generation and elimination of ADMA and we have developed ex vivo methods to assess the WB accumulation of ADMA in humans. The over-arching hypothesis is that dysregulation of ADMA metabolic pathways leads to greater ADMA whole blood content and greater capacity to accumulate ADMA, which 1) is not reflected by plasma levels and 2) is a better predictor of cardiovascular outcome than plasma levels in end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The following specific aims will be pursued to characterize whole blood ADMA in ESRD: Compare and contrast baseline free plasma ADMA and total whole blood (free plus protein-incorporated) ADMA concentrations in ESRD patients, matched hypertensive controls and a normal population. Determine the capacity of WB to accumulate (the net balance of generation and elimination) ADMA in ESRD patients, matched hypertensive controls and a normal population. We will use state-of-the-art, high performance liquid chromatography techniques to measure ADMA levels in plasma and whole blood. Samples for ADMA measurements will be obtained from subjects with end-stage renal disease immediately before their dialysis treatments. Samples will also be obtained from volunteers without kidney disease. This group will be matched to the end-stage renal volunteers by age, gender and ethnicity. These volunteers will also be matched for the presence of hypertension and diabetes. The third group will consist of a normal population to measure the normal levels of ADMA and compare to the other two groups. There is growing evidence to support a pathological role of ADMA in humans. These experiments will enhance our understanding of how ADMA is processed in the human body and how it is associated with kidney disease. Potentially, these results will lay the groundwork for new insights into the link between ADMA and the high cardiovascular disease burden in patients with kidney disease.

To examine the epidemiology of renal disease and its relationship to cardiovascular disease.

Among adults with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) has previously been reported to occur in approximately 10% of children with HIV-infection. The frequency of CKD, its causes, and its natural history in children and adolescents with HIV-infection have not been systematically studied, particularly in the era of new anti-retroviral medications. The primary aim of this study is to determine the how common pediatric HIV-infected individuals have evidence of persistent proteinuria and CKD.

In this study, Investigators will conduct a prospective cohort study of dialysis patients by collecting research-quality information on patient characteristics, comorbid diseases and laboratory markers used in routine practice, as well as novel biochemical markers and genetic data. Investigators will utilize data from the cohort to test the independent relationship between biochemical and genetic markers and Fabry disease and other rare diseases.

This is a single patient, single center study evaluating if administration of pan-genotypic DAA therapy on day 3 (+/- 2 days) post-kidney transplant prevents the transmission of hepatitis C virus infection from an HCV-positive donor kidney to an HCV-negative recipient.

Aim 1: Determine if there is an association between the APOL1 risk variants and allograft survival and function in African Americans Aim 2: Determine if there is an association between the presence of APOL1 risk variants in an African American kidney transplant recipient and the risk of recurrent disease Aim 3: Investigate mechanisms of APOL1 associated kidney disease by prospectively following African American kidney transplant recipients throughout their clinical course.

Open label single center study for the donation of HCV positive kidneys to HCV negative recipients with interventional treatment to prevent HCV transmission upon transplantation.

Individuals with kidney disease are at a higher risk for heart and vascular diseases, including heart attacks and strokes, than those with normal kidney function. The purpose of this research study is to collect information on the causes, complications and treatment of kidney disease. Patient characteristics, comorbid diseases and laboratory markers used in routine practice, as well as novel biochemical markers and genetic data will be collected to examine relationships between biochemical and genetic markers and cardiovascular risk. Information on the health history of incident hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients will be captured using structured patient interviews and review of medical records. Blood and urine specimens will be collected at the time of dialysis initiation and stored in order to perform novel biochemical and genetic assays in the future. The overall goal of the CKDCS/LUCID study is improve understanding of cardiac-associated risks and to improve treatment in patients with kidney disease. A cardiac imaging substudy will be performed in a subset of patients enrolled. The goals of the substudy are to examine whether the risks of developing common cardiac-related complications (coronary artery calcification [CAC] and left ventricular hypertrophy [LVH]) are associated with certain medications taken by individuals on dialysis and whether these risks are modified by a genotypic predisposition.

The purpose of this study is to estimate how quickly cognitive status and functional status in older patients on hemodialysis declines.