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COVID-19 and Patients with Kidney Disease on Dialysis

2024-03-28T20:58:35-04:00February 25th, 2022|Categories: Dialysis, Employment, eNews, Immunizations, Kidney Transplant, Lifestyle, Mental Health|Tags: |

By Alan Kliger, MD Updated March 18, 2022 I am writing this mid-March 2022, as the last peak of COVID infection with the Omicron variant has rapidly fallen in every US state, but wastewater analysis has shown places in the US where virus infection in some communities is rising again. A new sub-variant, BA.2 is making up about 23% of cases. Abroad, the United Kingdom is seeing increasing hospitalizations with COVID infection, and many locations in the far east have raging infections. The effects of the surge in Omicron cases around the world this past winter have deeply affected [...]

Depression and Dialysis – A Look at Two Potential Treatments

2024-03-28T20:58:39-04:00January 3rd, 2022|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Medication, Mental Health, The Kidney Citizen|

It is not uncommon for patients receiving dialysis treatment to have depression, though it can be hard to distinguish the symptoms of depression from those of kidney failure. Trouble sleeping, poor appetite, headaches, and fatigue are all symptoms of both conditions, leaving dialysis patients to wonder not only if they have depression, but if treatment would help to improve the symptoms they are feeling. Talking to your kidney care team is a great first step to figuring out who you should talk to about whether you have depression, along with figuring out potential treatment options. Though there are many ways [...]

Be Ready for Weather-Related Emergencies!

2024-03-28T20:58:43-04:00December 17th, 2021|Categories: Additional Resources, Dialysis, Physical Health, The Kidney Citizen|

By Mike Guffey, DPC Board Member It is critically important for dialysis patients to be prepared for weather emergencies, especially as we head into the hurricane and winter weather seasons. Patients should have an emergency checklist and a “go” kit with emergency supplies. www.ready.gov is a good go-to site with checklists and contact cards to help your family be prepared. You should gather the information well in advance of any incidents, but it is helpful to review them at the start of each severe weather season. Maintain the kit in a sturdy plastic container and rotate supplies on a [...]

Greetings from San Antonio Texas

2024-03-28T20:58:43-04:00December 17th, 2021|Categories: Dialysis, The Kidney Citizen|

By Natalie Zuniga, DPC Board Member, pictured here with her husband, Eddie Zuniga My name is Natalie Zuniga and I survived the 2021 Texas ice storm with my spouse, Eddie Zuniga, who is also a dialysis patient! I have been a dialysis patient for over three years and my husband has been a dialysis patient for eight years. At first, we thought it was a death sentence and we were not going to live much longer, and we gave up. But then, by hard work and education through Dialysis Patient Citizens and our nutritionist, Mary, we are now striving [...]

Travel Lovers, Don’t Let Dialysis Slow You Down

2024-03-28T20:58:46-04:00December 17th, 2021|Categories: Home Hemodialysis, Peritoneal Dialysis, Quality of Life, The Kidney Citizen, Treatment|

By Vanessa Evans, Sr. Manager, Patient Communities and Advocacy at Fresenius Medical Care North America and DPC Board Member Brenda and Bernie Alvey are the consummate camper travelers, crisscrossing the United States and taking in sights from the St. Louis Arch to the Grand Canyon. But their camper has a few unusual features, including two recliners, extra outlets, and a homemade stand to accommodate Brenda’s portable home hemodialysis equipment. The Alveys have always loved traveling, but they thought their trips had come to an end when Brenda was diagnosed with Membranoproliferative Glomerulonephritis (MPGN), an autoimmune disease that destroys kidney [...]

Improving Equity in Dialysis Treatments and Transplants

2024-03-28T20:58:50-04:00December 7th, 2021|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Kidney Transplant, Treatment|

Earlier this month the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced that it is seeking comments on future rulemaking to support the President’s executive orders to advance health equity and improve health outcomes for people in need of dialysis treatment and transplants. HHS Secretary, Xavier Becerra stated, “We want to hear from diverse stakeholders, especially the patients and their families. Your feedback is essential to our work in ensuring equal access to vital resources.” HHS acknowledged that both Black and Latino individuals are more likely to have kidney failure than white individuals in the United States (almost 4 times [...]

One Step Closer to a Wearable Artificial Kidney

2024-03-28T20:59:02-04:00August 11th, 2021|Categories: Dialysis, eNews, Home Hemodialysis|

For the past 20 years, Victor Gura, MD, FASN, an associate clinical professor of medicine at the Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has been working on a wearable artificial kidney, or WAK. Gura has been through multiple iterations - from prototype 1.0, which weighed over 200 pounds, to prototype 2.0, which weighed 11 pounds and was tested in clinical trials in Italy, London, and Seattle, to the latest version, WAK 3.0. Weighing in at just 2 pounds and powered by a rechargeable battery, WAK 3.0 was issued patent number 10,993,183 for a combination wearable and stationary dialysis system. The description [...]

Ask Your Nephrologist: What is happening to my skin and nails?

2024-03-28T20:59:08-04:00May 19th, 2021|Categories: Dialysis, Kidney Transplant, Physical Health, The Kidney Citizen|

Keith A. Bellovich, DO There is a broad range of skin manifestations when having to depend on dialysis. Skin disorders can affect a patient's quality of life and can negatively impact their mental and physical health. Itching (uremic pruritus) is by far the most common complaint that patients suffer. But dry skin (xerosis cutis) and skin discoloration are also common complaints in patient with severe loss of kidney function. Dry skin is caused by reduction in the size of sweat glands and atrophy of sebaceous or oil producing glands. Dry skin increases the susceptibility to infections and this is aggravated by [...]

There Is No Place Like Home

2024-03-28T20:59:12-04:00April 19th, 2021|Categories: Home Hemodialysis, Peritoneal Dialysis, The Kidney Citizen|

By Shaminder Gupta, MD, Nephrologist End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is a life changing diagnosis and impacts both the patient and the family. While waiting for renal transplantation, renal replacement therapy (RRT) is required to sustain life. RRT, also known as dialysis, can be provided either in-center or at home. Home therapies can either be via peritoneum (PD) or via fistula (HHD). Patients are concerned about their own abilities to provide this life sustaining therapy on their own. This is natural and should be anticipated as a barrier. Most of us, including medical professionals, would also share these apprehensions. Success at [...]

Participating in a Clinical Trial

2024-03-28T20:59:56-04:00August 21st, 2020|Categories: Additional Resources, Early Intervention, eNews, Home Hemodialysis, In-Center Hemodialysis, Kidney Transplant, Peritoneal Dialysis, Treatment, Webinar|

New medical treatments and products are continually being developed for people living with kidney disease. Part of the development process for high quality, scientific, and safe options is through research to test the treatment or product before it becomes available on the market. This phase of research is called a clinical trial or a clinical research project. People can volunteer to be part of a clinical trial if they meet the specific requirements for the study. You might consider participating in the research process for many reasons including if it has a personal meaning for you or if you want to [...]

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